Oretachi no Sadame
by T.D. Sugoi
Summary: Narrowly escaping from his death, Naruto is rescued from the brink of insanity by two people: Uchiha Natsuko and the Kyuubi. What else is new? NarutoxOC. On-hold until I come to terms with my Dadès death.
1. The Beginning

**(To those of you that have me on Author's Alert for R+V: I'm working on it, I've been having a little writer's block with that story, though. Expect a chapter sometime soon).**

**Pairings (If the story goes as planned. I'm sure most writers know that at some point; the story writes itself): NarutoxOCxFemKyuubi  
**

**So... sup? Basically, this is my... (was it 4th? 5th?) attempt at a story. I've never managed to write a Naruto fic, so I hope I don't _majorly_ screw up. But meh, I'm confident in my abilities. Anyways, I hope you enjoy. There's three major changes to cannon.**

**1. Naruto meets the Kyuubi earlier, and she's a female.**

**2. You'll find out in the story.**

**3. Team 7 has no Sakura.**

**Alright, are you ready for this? Are you sure? Meh. Just btw: It starts with some flashbacks to add insight/suspense. Depends on how you look at it.  
**_

* * *

Within the endless wetlands which were surrounding Amegakure, there was a lone building; sheathed in eternal darkness. Not even the most hardened shinobi would willingly step foot within its boundaries. Of course, the cracked skulls lying around didn't help to ease their worries…_

_Unbeknownst to all affected parties, there was a meeting going on inside the room. A meeting which would change the fate of the entire world, which was ironically the exact opposite of what the two shinobi within the room wanted. Inside the 'meeting room', two darkened visages were staring across at each other from the table. "Has it been done?" One of the men asked, hardening his coiled eyes as he played with a lock of blonde hair._

_"It has been done. We will soon be gods among men!" The remaining man cackled, raising his head as if to reveal his demonic eyes to the world. "All we have to do now… Is wait," He grinned, causing his companion to narrow his eyes even further._

_"This isn't like you…" He frowned, as the sudden realization hit him. "You're in it for yourself…" He raised his hand and flicked a gold kunai towards his sinister 'partner'; relishing the sound of the kunai flying through flesh. "I will not have a weak link in my organization…" He glared down at his dead companion, before he moved his hands up to form a hand-seal._

_Little did he know; his actions had sealed his fate. For better or for worse, there was no backing out…_

_---One Week Later---_

_Chaos - the beginning, ending, and catalyst of all. It could not be completely avoided, nor easily dispersed. Unfortunately, chaos would be invoked on this day. A large fox nearly 50 metres in length; walked into a humongous cave. It seemed to be humming, its rose-colored eyes looking around as it walked. Finally, the fox reached the point where the cave stopped, and its eyes widened in shock. The cave was smeared with blood, and there was a lone man standing at the edge of it. The same man who had been killed in a meeting near Amegakure…_

_He turned around with a grin, his eyes flickering between onyx and crimson. Finally, his eyes settled on a compromise. His iris was pure crimson, and there was a black ring within it, connecting to 3 hollow, onyx circles. In the middle of the 'ring', was the pupil; nearly half the size of a regular pupil. "Well, if it isn't the Kyuubi…" He laughed, as his sinister chakra began to seep out. "I'm sure you know that this is strictly a business call. I'm afraid that your…" He looked towards the blood with a frown. "Brother got in my way. Nothing personal."_

_The Kyuubi was about to run towards the intruder in rage. Yet when the Kyuubi tried to move, it found itself unable to. "Oh, no…" The intruder spoke softly, his malevolent smile visible through his voice. "I'm afraid that I have to live… Not as if you can stop me, can you?" He grinned; revealing perfectly white teeth. "Either way, I'm afraid we don't have much time…" The man mused, before grinning again. "I guess you'll just have to take my revenge for me!" He cackled as he disappeared, leaving a stunned Kyuubi in his wake._

_The Kyuubi finally came back to its senses, and revealed a grin just as malevolent as the intruder. At that point, its beautiful maroon fur became pure crimson, as its eyes became dark nearly to the point where they were black._

_---One Month Later---_

_Namikaze Minato, the Fourth Hokage; commonly known as the Yondaime. His predecessor, Sarutobi, held him in the highest regards, as his successor, and as his friend. Minato felt the same way about his predecessor, even if he was less vocal about it. Yet, there was one aspect of his personality which everybody feared: his selflessness. Minato would gladly risk his life for his village, something which many people admired. At this point; however, it drove Sarutobi insane._

_"Please Minato," Sarutobi pleaded, "Let me seal the Kyuubi. You're still young and your son…"_

_"Will live without me," Minato adamantly replied, his blue eyes holding a mixture of sadness and determination._

_"He won't be happy!" Sarutobi yelled. "Just let me do it! I'm going to die either way!"_

_"No." Minato brushed a clump of blond hair away from his face, as he stared at Sarutobi. "I won't let another person's life be taken unless I can help it. That's my nindo, old man."_

_Sarutobi chuckled for a moment. 'Here I am, trying to convince the most stubborn man in the universe… to abandon his village.' "I won't stop you," Sarutobi finally gave in. "I just hope you understand… the villagers won't treat Naruto half as nicely as you want."_

_Minato snorted derisively, "Of course they will. Not even Danzo would think to go against my last wishes, would he?"_

_"I wonder… "Sarutobi muttered._

_Minato gazed down at his handiwork: the seal adorning his son's stomach. At that moment, an ANBU rushed in, barely managing to keep his emotions in check. "Yondaime-sama! The Kyuubi is almost at our walls!"_

_Minato slowly tore his gaze away from his son. "Alright, head back to the defence. I'll be out soon."_

_"Hai!" The ANBU acknowledged, as he formed a seal; disappearing in a whirlwind of leaves._

_"I still don't understand where the hell the leaves come…" Minato laughed sadly. "I guess it's off to the frontlines for us, Old Man…" His voice faltered for a moment. "Take care of him, alright? I don't want…"_

_Sarutobi, sensing the dread behind Minato's words, swiftly cut him off. "I'll do what I can. Let's go."_

_The two of them, along with Naruto, set off towards the edge of the forest._

_---3 Hours Later---_

_Minato gritted his teeth in frustration. Finally, realizing he had no other option, he bit his right thumb and began to form hand-seals. __**"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"**__ Minato thrust his right hand onto the ground as seals extended from it. A large explosion occurred as the Leaf shinobi struggled to get out of the way. Finally, as the smoke cleared, Minato was on top of a humongous toad, which was nearly as tall as the Kyuubi itself._

_"Minato, you know who that is, right?" Gamabunta, the toad boss asked; his commanding voice booming through the area._

_"I know, Oyabun," Minato sighed. Sarutobi leaped up onto the large toad, and solemnly handed Naruto into Minato's waiting arms. No words were exchanged between the two, as Minato gave a weak smile to Sarutobi. "I need you to distract the Kyuubi."_

_Gamabunta whistled in amazement. "I can do a lot of things…"_

_"Fifteen minutes," Minato cut him off. "That's all I need."_

_Gamabunta nodded, and he began to fight the fox. Throughout the fight, Naruto kept his eyes closed, as he breathed calmly. Almost as if he knew that the encounter would end favourably… Minato began rapidly moving his hands to form numerous seals, and had entered a trance at some point. When he had nearly completed all of the seals required to forever bind the Kyuubi, Gamabunta let out a cry; almost breaking his concentration._

_Minato gritted his teeth and continued to seal, until he finally reached the last seal. At this point, Naruto had opened his blue eyes and began to loudly cry; attracting the attention of the Kyuubi. The Kyuubi looked curiously at Naruto, its eyes widening for a brief moment as its fur flickered between maroon and crimson. __**"Shiki **__**Fūjin!" **__Minato cried out, as the Kyuubi's eyes widened; breaking the evil hold which had been placed upon it._

_A loud crack of thunder ensued, followed by the calling of a booming voice. __**"Who has summoned me?"**_

_"I have," Minato winced, suffering from chakra exhaustion. Regardless, he pushed through; exhausting his mental barriers completely._

_**"For what purpose?" **__The Shinigami asked, its black robes extended over all its limbs; save for a _literally_ bony hand._

_"Seal the Kyuubi into this boy. I understand the price…" Minato croaked, at his limit._

_The Kyuubi stared on in terror, as the Shinigami inspected Naruto. __**"Hmmm… Most interesting…"**__ It drew its head up to look at Kyuubi. __**"For the record… I'm sorry,"**__ The Kyuubi slightly inclined its head in response. __**"It seems that Kami wills this to happen…" **__The Shinigami finished. After the pause, the Shinigami brought its scythe down with a resounding crack, and the Kyuubi's essence began to leak into the boy, from its tails; to the boy's seal. Finally, after an excruciating wait, the Kyuubi completely vanished into the boy, and whisker marks began to form on his cheeks._

_Minato looked at Sarutobi for a moment. "Keep…him…safe…" He croaked, "Tell…_Those_…Two…"_

_The Shinigami looked upon their exchange for a moment, before he swivelled his head to face the two of them. __**"It is time. We cannot delay any longer, Namikaze Minato. Rest assured that your boy shall accomplish great things."**_

_Minato weakly grinned at the Shinigami, as its scythe descended upon him; forcibly ripping its soul out from him._

_As an afterthought, the Shinigami spoke to Sarutobi as well. __**"I'll see you in 13 years…" **__He nodded. __**"Until then…"**_

_---Four Years Later---_

_Naruto looked over his shoulders as he ran, his blue eyes wide in fear. It was his birthday, right? So why was he running? Why wasn't he getting presents and hugs from his parents? 'I no have any…' his inner sceptic remarked; utilizing his limited vocabulary to its full extent. Naruto began to pick up speed and he sharply turned into an alleyway at the last second, using it as a shortcut to get away from the villagers. To his credit (and luck), half of the villagers slammed into the wall, or passed the alley, while the other half kept chasing him._

_Naruto brushed a bead of sweat away from his forehead, disturbing his blonde locks in the process. 'Have to quickly…' He picked up his speed again until his limbs were nearly screaming in protest. Naruto gave an exhausted grin as he saw the light signalling the end of the alley… when he stopped in fear._

_Standing in his path were at least 15 villagers, some of them shinobi by the looks of it. Naruto swallowed the lump in his throat as he tried to run in the other direction… to no avail. Naruto looked between the two advancing groups and he curled himself into a ball and closed his eyes._

_"Aww, is the little demon afraid?" One of the villagers mocked._

_"Well, there's no getting out of this!" Another villager laughed as he was kicked in the ribs._

_Naruto's eyes widened in shock and he coughed up a gob of blood. The villagers were encouraged by this, and began to beat him even further, nearly to an inch of his life. Finally, one of the shinobi took their kunai and jabbed it into his chest, barely missing his heart._

_Time began to slow down for Naruto. He coughed up an immense amount of blood, as his chakra began to leak out. The villagers backed away in fear, leaving Naruto to die alone…_

_Naruto was awoken by the incessant dripping of small water droplets. He didn't know when he'd passed out, nor how; he only knew that he was no longer awake. He groaned as he got up, still sore from the beating he'd taken. Finally, after he'd stood, Naruto looked around in shock. There were iron pipes everywhere, marked with a tinge of rust. Underneath the pipes, there were several doorways which all had unreadable words above them. Naruto finally noticed the largest opening and the light that was shining through it. He tentatively took a step towards the opening, and continued on; managing to keep a brave façade._

_Naruto finally stopped in front of a large cage, with openings the width of Naruto between the stainless steel bars. In the middle of the opening, there was a piece of paper with unrecognizable words, overlaying a huge keyhole. Naruto slowly approached the cage, unable to see anything within its dark depths. He wondered who, or what, was in there._

_Almost as if answering his question, the inside of the cage began to light up, revealing a large nine-tailed fox with sleek maroon fur. It slowly opened its eyelids, revealing entrancing, rose-colored eyes._

_Naruto suddenly found himself standing in front of the cage, staring into the fox's eyes. He tried to move away, but to no avail. His feet were firmly rooted to the ground, as he stared into its eyes._

_**"So, you're finally here," **__The fox commented, it's powerful voice filling the room._

_"Who…" Naruto tried to search for the right words, "Who… you?"_

_The fox stared at Naruto for a moment, __**"I'm…"**__ It paused, searching for the right words. __**"A friend."**_

_"You be my friend?" Naruto grinned, unafraid of the fox. He suddenly realized something , though. "You no human…"_

_The fox seemed to deflate, almost as if it were sighing. __**"Yes, I will be your friend; no, I'm not a human. Does it matter?"**_

_Naruto grinned, "No!" He paused for a moment, remembering how the other kids would introduce themselves. "I Naruto!"_

_**"I know," **__The fox responded. __**"I suppose my name would be… Kara Hitomi."**_

_Naruto gasped in awe. "Pretty name…" Hitomi chuckled, unable to tell Naruto the truth. She knew it would be detrimental for him not to know, but… He deserved to be a child, didn't he? Naruto finally spoke again, breaking the small awkward silence which had fallen. "But I demon…"_

_**"NO!" **__Hitomi bellowed, scaring Naruto to no end. She suddenly noticed what affect her yelling had, and she softened her tone. __**"You're not a monster. I don't think anybody else would be able to hold out as long as you…"**_

_Naruto blinked uncertainly for a moment and a lone tear fell from his eye. "Why they beat me?"_

_**"They're afraid," **__Hitomi sighed._

_"Why?" Naruto sat down on the dusty ground, almost as if he knew that it would be a long tale._

_**"They were hurt by somebody very close to you,"**__ She replied carefully. __**"That doesn't matter though. You…" **__She paused for a moment, as if searching for the right words. __**"You need to learn."**_

_"Learn?"_

_**"To read, write, and think,"**__ Hitomi explained. __**"I'm going to turn you into the greatest prodigy this village has ever seen."**_

_Naruto grinned, when he suddenly felt a tugging sensation. The world seemed to spin around him, until he woke up again, staring into the red eyes of a girl his age._

_"Are you alright?" She asked, staring down at Naruto in concern. Naruto's eyes widened as he took in her appearance. She had long, black hair which traversed to the middle of her back. Her pale skin was contrasted by her barely visible blush, in addition to her full red lips, delicate eyebrows, and wry smile. When she noticed that he wasn't replying, she sighed. "I asked you a question."_

_"I…" Naruto frowned, "I fine."_

_She looked at Naruto, unconvinced, before she offered her hand to him. "You need some food. Come on, I'll treat you," she grinned, and Naruto obediently took her hand and followed her._

_The pair stopped in front of a stall, which had the words "Ichiraku's Ramen" adorning the top of it. Naruto hesitantly walked in, afraid he'd be thrown away again, when the old man at the counter welcomed the two of them. "Ah, Natsuko-san! How's Shisui-kun doing?"_

_"He's doing well," Natsuko grinned, "but enough of that. How about 2 miso ramen?"_

_"Of course, and for you?" The old man asked Naruto, looking carefully at him. When the old man recognized Naruto, he cut himself off. "Never mind, we'll give you one miso ramen on the house, young man!"_

_Naruto's eyes widened in shock, and a small tear escaped from his eye. He quickly wiped it away before any of them could see, and he nodded furiously. The old man laughed, and he put three miso ramen on the counter._

_"So, what's your name?" Natsuko asked Naruto as he quickly devoured his bowl of ramen._

_"I'm Uzumaki Naruto!" He grinned, feeling a lot better._

_"I'm Uchiha Natsuko," She returned Naruto's grin with one of her own; as she devoured her own two bowls of ramen._

_---8 Years Later; Present---_

"I'll tell you the truth," Mizuki grinned, as he took a large shuriken off of his back.

"DON'T DO IT, MIZUKI!" Naruto's Sensei, Iruka cried out; blood spilling from his mouth.

"A rule was created after an incident 12 years ago," Mizuki explained, a sadistic grin worming itself onto his face. "A rule… A rule that only you can't be told about!"

_"Is he talking about _that_ rule?"_Naruto mentally asked his companion.

_**"I think so…" **__Hitomi snarled within Naruto's mindscape. __**"You **_**have**_** to act surprised, alright? It's a matter of life or death."**_

"—The Kyuubi," Mizuki finished, waiting for Naruto's reaction.

To their surprise; Naruto kept a stoic face on, and he stared at Mizuki for a moment before bursting into laughter. "I-I'm sorry," He managed between breaths. "Did you just call the dead last of the academy…" Naruto grinned, as he brought his index and middle fingers together to form a cross-shaped seal. "The Kyuubi?"

"Are you retarded? That's exactly what I said!" Mizuki yelled, annoyed that Naruto thought it was a joke.

"Well you see, Mizuki-_temee_…" Naruto began to circulate his chakra. "I wouldn't give a crap even if I was the Kyuubi itself." Iruka and Mizuki both looked at Naruto in shock as he summoned well over one hundred clones. "Alright guys!" Naruto cheerfully cried. "It's time to kick his ass into next year!"

The multitudes of Naruto's all cracked their fists with sadistic grins, as they charged Mizuki. Throughout the night, there were pained cries reverberating through the forest. After the beating was done, a masked shinobi returned to the Hokage tower to make a report.

At the crack of dawn, an exhausted Naruto was slumped against a tree, his breathing laboured while he slept. Iruka looked at Naruto, proud to say that he'd taught the boy. Finally coming to a decision, Iruka quietly untied his headband, and placed it on Naruto's forehead.

Naruto opened his eyes slowly, squinting at the bright sunlight. "Ah, geez… So tired…" He muttered, absentmindedly scratching his forehead. Naruto immediately snapped awake when he felt the soft metal of the ninja headband, and he touched his forehead in shock. "A headband? But that means…"

"Congratulations, Naruto," Iruka grinned. "You're now a genin."

_**"See kit? I knew you could do it," **__Hitomi proudly smiled inside her landscape. A warm feeling was blossoming out of her chest. A warm feeling she hadn't felt for ages…_

"Iruka-sensei…" Naruto spoke in hushed tones for a moment, before a huge grin appeared on his face. "Thank you _so_ much!"

Iruka chuckled lightly, "It's no big deal. The way I see it, you're overqualified." His face suddenly turned stern. "You can't prank anybody anymore, Naruto."

Naruto rubbed his head sheepishly, "Come on, Sensei... I'm going to be the next Hokage; do you really think I could afford to lose the favour of my people?"

Iruka chuckled lightly, _'Why would you want to be the Hokage when everybody hates you?' _"It's not a matter of losing their favour…" Iruka grinned, "It's a matter of gaining it."

Naruto gave Iruka a thumb's-up gesture, and he winked. "I won't fail, Iruka-sensei. Just think about it; soon you'll be able to tell everybody you trained the Hokage," His smile suddenly faded. "Despite his being a _demon_," he spat, nearly choking on the words.

"W-What are you talking about, Naruto?" Iruka nervously laughed. "Mizuki was just trying to lower your guard; it's not as if he was telling the truth…"

"Indeed," Sarutobi landed beside Iruka. "He was pretty scared of you."

"I'm just repeating what the villagers say," Naruto soberly replied.

"They just don't know how awesome you are," Sarutobi grinned.

"Thanks, Jiji," Naruto lightened up considerably. His stomach loudly rumbled, and he rubbed his head, embarrassed.

"Tell you what, Naruto…" Iruka checked his wallet before continuing. "I'll treat you to ramen as congratulations."

"Seriously?" Naruto's grin nearly took up his entire face. "What're we waiting for? Let's go!" Naruto leaped onto a tree and immediately jumped his way to the village, scaring numerous birds in the process.

"I think the late Yondaime might have some competition for his nickname," Iruka laughed.

"The 'Orange Flash', eh?" Sarutobi replied, while bounding after Naruto. "It doesn't do him justice." _'I hope you're watching over him, Minato.'_

In no time, the trio reached Ichiraku Ramen, ran by Ichiraku Teuchi and his daughter, Ichiraku Ayame. "What can I get for my favourite customer," Teuchi asked, as soon as he saw Naruto.

"Hmm…" Naruto seemed thoughtful for a moment. "I'll have three miso ramen, five pork ramen, and one beef special to start off!"

Iruka glumly looked at his wallet, as he handed Teuchi the money. Ayame handed Naruto his ramen and seemed to notice his headband. "Naruto, is that yours?" She asked, a small smile playing on her lips.

"Of course, Ayame-nee-chan!" Naruto proudly grinned, before digging into his ramen. In no time, the ramen was finished; leaving Sarutobi and Iruka to stare at Naruto in awe, shock, and fear.

_**"I'm pretty sure that's not good for you…"**_ _Hitomi clutched her stomach in pain._

_"But… It's ramen!" _Naruto pointed out, sending her a mental glare. Hitomi's comeback was interrupted, when Natsuko entered the booth and glared at Naruto.

"Where were you?" She demanded, glaring at Naruto.

"Sorry about that Natsu-chan," Naruto grinned. "I had to take out the trash."

"It's Hikari," Natsuko corrected. "I told you… I'm not keeping that name anymore…"

Naruto immediately sobered up; his infectious smile dying from its place. "Sorry about that, Hikari-chan…"

"It's alright," Hikari sighed and sat down beside Naruto, wondering why she had to lose everything.

_---Flashback---_

_A pair of red eyes met a conflicting pair of red eyes in the rain. Both seemed to match each other, carrying a pinwheel in place of the pupil. "Itachi…" Natsuko's frown deepened and Naruto looked at her in concern._

_"Natsuko," Itachi nodded, sheathing his bloody sword. He looked at her for a moment, and sighed. "I'll leave you be. For the memory of Shisui."_

_Natsuko's eyes widened immensely, "It was you?!"_

_"The council," Itachi coolly replied, as he glanced at Naruto. He seemed to be in deep thought for a moment, before he returned his gaze to Natsuko. "You should disguise yourself. If _they_ know that both you and Sasuke are alive… You will lose any chance at a normal life."_

_"Why… Why did you do it?" Natsuko asked, nearly in a catatonic state. Naruto looked at her and reassuringly placed his hand on hers, when she began to waver._

_"I've lost all hope for this pathetic clan," Itachi replied. "They were about to launch an attack against Konoha." He imperceptibly shifted his posture when he noticed that Natsuko's anger wasn't dissolving. "To top it off, they planned to kill Naruto."_

_"It's not right!" Natsuko cried, "You could've at least let the kids live!"_

_Itachi released a deep sigh, and began to form seals. Before his seals finished, he replied, "Right and wrong are simply concepts. There is neither true right, nor true wrong. The Uchiha clan thought it was _wrong_ when they were surpassed by others of a different clan. The Hyuuga main family thought it was right to curse their branch family. I only tell you this for your sake, and for your late brother's. Make him proud… He always did say that you were like a light in his life…"_

_As soon as Itachi finished his words, he disappeared in a whirlwind of leaves. Naruto looked at Natsuko and shook her lightly. "Natsuko-chan, we have to leave…"_

_"I… see…" Natsuko frowned and lowered her head for a moment. She suddenly raised her head in pure determination. "Today marks the end of Uchiha Natsuko," She picked up a small kunai and cut her finger, letting droplets of blood fall to the ground. "And the beginning of Uzumaki Hikari."_

_Naruto gave Hikari a brief smile, and they quickly ran away from Uchiha grounds, leaving a collapsed boy in the rain._

_---End Flashback---_

Naruto and Hikari were about to walk out of the stall, when Sarutobi stopped them. "Naruto, Hikari… I have some news for you."

"What is it?" Naruto turned around and asked Sarutobi, as he cleared his throat.

"You two will be on the same team… with Uchiha Sasuke."

Naruto's eyes narrowed, and Hikari clenched her hand. _**"Relax, I'm sure there's a reason…"**_

"Why?" Hikari asked, beating Naruto to the chase. "Don't you think it'd be a bad idea?"

"His team was the only one open," Sarutobi replied with a sigh. "I understand your feelings towards him, but…"

"We should get over them, because feelings don't make the shinobi…" Naruto rolled his eyes, "Thanks, Oji-san. At least you told us."

Sarutobi nodded, and Iruka turned to him with a frown plastered on his face. "Are you sure it's for the best?"

"I'm afraid so. Kakashi will have to instruct them in the Sharingan, regardless of her unwillingness to use _it_." Sarutobi solemnly replied, before lightening up. "Could I get another miso?"

"Of course, Hokage-sama," Teuchi answered, as he rushed to make the ramen.

Iruka sighed, "Can you really blame her for not wanting to use the Mangekyou? It _is_ the reason that her brother died…"

"I don't blame her," Sarutobi reassured Iruka, "I want her to be the best that she can be. Shinobi don't become the best if they live by their emotions."

"I'm going to have to disagree with you, Hokage-sama…" Iruka replied, mustering as much courage as he could. "I think that emotions are all that save us from becoming killing machines."

Sarutobi gave Iruka a small nod, "It's true, but your opponent is more likely to manipulate these emotions."

"Which will cause you to try your hardest," Iruka responded, causing Sarutobi to grin.

The next morning, the sun began its slow ascent over the horizon, causing a very irate Naruto to wake up. "I hate the sun…" He mumbled, as he began to get ready. His eyes widened when he remembered the hitai-ite on his dresser. Naruto tied it on his forehead and grinned, revealing strikingly long canine teeth. "Alright! Let's do this!"

Naruto decided to forego the door; jumping out of the window instead. He began to jump across rooftops in a yellow blur, as he rushed towards the Academy. Finally, Naruto managed to get into the classroom somewhat early. All conversation stopped as Naruto walked in, and sat down beside Hikari. Hikari gave Naruto a small smile, and the two of them went back to daydreaming.

"Hey dobe, didn't you hear? This class is for genin only," Sasuke called out.

Naruto laughed and turned towards Sasuke. "Hey temee, didn't you hear? I completed a B-Rank mission, and I was promoted. Or did you not notice my hitai-ite?"

Everybody burst out laughing at this, and Sasuke began to blush. "As if you could complete a B-Rank," He scoffed. "You're the dobe of the class, and I'm rookie of the year."

Naruto grinned. "Well, I can see two problems there. First of all, you're _rookie_ of the year." His grin widened when he saw Sasuke began to fume. "Second of all, if they say _you're_ the best shinobi this year, then their standards are too low."

Sasuke was about to retort when Iruka walked in and slammed the door behind him. "Alright! Starting today, you are now Genin!" Iruka winked at Naruto, who was sitting in his chair. "Due to this, you will be put in teams of three, along with a Jounin sensei. Remember, you may have made it through the Academy, but it's a different world out there."

"Don't worry about it, Sensei." Kiba called out. "Me and Akamaru can take on anything!" The dog which was sitting atop Kiba's head yipped proudly, showing that it completely believed Kiba's words.

Iruka looked at Kiba for a moment. "Kiba, let me tell you something… Pride will do _nothing_ except get you killed…" He softened of a moment. "Or irreparably injured."

_**"Sounds like he has some experience in that area," **__Hitomi commented._

_"It can't be helped," Naruto responded. "Like he said, it's a different world out there…"_

"Anyways, let me tell you what your teams are," Iruka grinned as he picked up a piece of paper and began reading from it. "Team 7: Uzumaki Naruto, Uzumaki Hikari, and Uchiha Sasuke. Your team will be taught by Hatake Kakashi." Sasuke's eyes narrowed and Hikari clenched her hand into a fist underneath the desk. At this point, Naruto tuned out, ignoring the rest of the teams.

Team 7 sat in their desks, waiting for well over 3 hours. Finally, a silver-haired man walked into the room. He wore a mask which covered the bottom half of his face, and his hitai-ite overlapped with his mask, completely covering his left eye. "Alright Team 7, let's go to the roof." He disappeared in a puff of smoke, leaving the three of them to walk up on their own.

Naruto grudgingly pushed in his chair and went to the roof, with Hikari in pursuit. After a minute, Sasuke followed the two of them. Finally, they reached the roof, where they were met by Kakashi. "So, why don't you introduce yourselves?"

"What do you mean? Could you demonstrate?" Naruto asked, throwing his hands up in defeat.

"Alright… I'm Hatake Kakashi. I have no intention of telling you my likes or dislikes, and as for my dream… I have few hobbies," He replied, skilfully evading their questions. You next, blondie."

Naruto grinned. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto. I like ramen, training, and Hikari-chan. I dislike ramen's waiting time, hypocrites, and presumptuous idiots. My dream… " Naruto paused for a moment, "It's a secret."

Kakashi stared at Naruto for a moment. "Alright, next." _'I'm surprised he said nothing about being a Hokage…'_

Hikari sighed, "I'm Uzumaki Hikari. I like ramen, training, and Naruto-kun. I dislike shortcuts, egoists, and those who gain acknowledgement for their birth and not work. My dream is…" She paused and looked at Naruto for a moment. "My dream is to allow my brother's memory to rest in peace."

Kakashi frowned imperceptibly underneath his mask. _'She's interesting, but… I didn't know Naruto had a sister…'_ "Alright, your turn."

Sasuke sighed, "My name is Uchiha Sasuke. There are many things I hate, and there aren't a lot of things I like. Also, I have an ambition which I have no intention to leave as just a dream. The revival of the Uchiha clan, of which I am the last living member in Konoha, and… To kill a certain man."

Hikari's clenched her fist even more, until her knuckles were red. After taking in a silent breath, she released all the tension from her hand.

"You three have unique personalities…" Kakashi sighed after a moment. _'Just my luck. I end up with two enigmas and an avenger.'_

"Anyways, tomorrow we have a mission. We'll be partaking in a test, to see if you are worthy of being genin. Meet me at Training ground 7 at 5 A.M." Kakashi stood on the railing and prepared to jump. "Oh, and don't eat anything unless you want to puke." As soon as he finished his sentence, Kakashi jumped towards the Hokage tower to hand in a report.

To Be Continued

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**Well, how was it? I don't hate critique btw. It _has_ been forever since I've seen Naruto. The next chapter should be out within the week, I'm still trying to fit summer school in with my schedule. Oh, and if anyone's going to ask re: lemons - I can't write them, but if someone's willing to write them for me, I'll change the rating and add yours.**

**Anyways, give me ideas for the next chapter. It's not that I don't have any, I'd just prefer to let you guys have some autonomy. (Save me from that stroke).**

**Laterz :)  
**


	2. A Test of Friendship

**I'm quite surprised that I managed to get this chapter out so quickly. Who knows, maybe I was motivated. Either way, don't expect speedy updates in the future. It's just cuz I have writer's block re: my other story. Anyways, in this chapter, we have the usual, Kakashi vs. Team 7... etc, etc, Sasuke's arrogance, Naru + Hikari's skill... You know, everything that makes the perfect fic. Hope you enjoy.**

**BTW: I'd like an idea for the next chapter. I need something plausible, and it'd help if you gave me an idea. (when you read the ending-ish, you'll understand what I mean)  
**

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"Hokage-sama, I'd like to request some information on one of my team-members," Kakashi requested, looking Sarutobi in the eye.

Sarutobi put the report down, and looked at Kakashi. "Which team-member would that be? Hikari?"

Kakashi rubbed his head sheepishly. "You already knew? I must be getting bad at hiding these things…"

"It was obvious... Naruto and the Uchiha are self explanatory," Sarutobi explained. "Whereas to you, Hikari seems to be an enigma, one who evokes lots of interest in you…" Sarutobi sighed as he took his pipe out of his mouth. "I'm afraid I'll have to deny your request."

"But Hokage-sama…" Kakashi protested, "I need to know the strengths and weaknesses of my team…"

"They're _your_ team, right? Either way… I'll tell you this much. Hikari and Naruto loathe Sasuke. They will do anything to stay away from Sasuke, and Sasuke would easily sacrifice any of them in a second." Sarutobi chuckled at that. "If he could."

"Sir?" Kakashi asked, somewhat surprised.

"Hikari and Naruto… They work together far better than most Jounin would," Sarutobi took a stack of paper out of his desk and handed it to Kakashi. "In fact, if they tried… They could easily take down any of the Jounin in Konoha, or even Kiri."

Kakashi's eyes widened. "Hokage-sama… This is…"

"Exactly. They've managed to complete many missions, despite their lack of clearance," Sarutobi grinned. "On a lesser note, You may want to have witnesses to the test you will be providing."

"I…" Kakashi's hitai-ite dropped, indicating that Kakashi was furrowing his brows. His eye suddenly widened. "They're going to…"

"You'll need witnesses to prove it to the council, unless you want calls for your resignation. God knows how they feel about the _last_ Uchiha," Sarutobi grimaced in anger and pity.

"Of course, Hokage-sama. Thank you for your time," Kakashi nodded and brought his hands up to form a seal.

"Kakashi… Treat those two as Minato treated you…" Kakashi nodded and disappeared in a whirlwind of leaves, causing many of the papers which were neatly stacked on the desk to go flying. Sarutobi sighed as he looked at the mess. "I _hate_ the paperwork…" He grumbled, as he began to pick up all the paper and sort it.

Meanwhile, Naruto and Hikari were heading towards Ichiraku's for their daily 'nourishment'. "So, what's your opinion of Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked, completely aware that Hikari was still fuelled by anger.

"He… He's a good man," Hikari replied, surprising Naruto. "He's gone through lots of pain, you can see it by the look in his eye. It's also evident in his posture, his voice, and the way he treats us."

"I know he's gone through lots of pain… We all have…" Naruto sighed. "The question is… Why does that make him a good man?"

"He's trying not to repeat his mistakes with us," Hikari replied. A frown formed on her face. "I think… he has the Sharingan."

Naruto's eyes widened. "Would that be a good thing, or a bad thing?"

"Either or," Hikari replied. "I think you can guess why…"

"_**Because that means the Hokage hopes she'll reveal the Sharingan to Kakashi," **__Hitomi explained, as she stretched her paws out. __**"Back to sleep for me…"**_

"Oh…" Naruto sighed, "I really am naïve, aren't I?"

Hikari grinned as she ruffled his hair. "You're not naïve. Think about the 'Last Uchiha'."

Naruto burst out laughing and he attempted to imitate Sasuke, _"I want to kill a certain man."_

Hikari laughed and began to imitate Sakura, _"Oh, Sasuke-kun! I love you _so_ much!"_

Behind the pillar, Kakashi nearly burst out laughing. As it was, he snorted loudly, allowing Naruto and Hikari to know that he was there. Despite that, he still kept on following them, intent on seeing why the Hokage wouldn't reveal any information on Hikari.

"So, Kakashi-sensei…" Naruto grinned, and Kakashi froze in place. "Heard anything interesting?"

"Well," Kakashi came out from behind the pillar and calmly replied, "I heard your opinion of Sasuke."

"I don't suppose that it's wrong?" Hikari winked at him, as the two of them reached Ichiraku's.

"I'd have to say you're being too nice," Kakashi replied with a laugh. "You wouldn't mind if I joined you?"

"Not at all," Naruto replied. "The more the merrier."

Kakashi smiled, glad that Naruto was willing to let him in. "Thanks, Naruto-kun."

"It's no problem," Naruto laughed. "If I can get one more person addicted to ramen, Teuchi-san will give me free ramen for a month!"

A small bead of sweat began to form on the back of Kakashi's head, and he laughed. "Sorry to disappoint you, but I've been here a lot of times… With my old team mates…"

"Don't worry about it, sensei," Hikari patted him on the shoulder. "I don't think they'd want you to be so sullen about it."

"What do you mean?" Kakashi looked at Hikari in interest. "You know, you seem to have an almost inhumane perception…"

"Well, you know what they say… Women are from Venus, aren't we?"

"Wouldn't I know it…" A white-haired man commented, as he sat down beside Naruto and Hikari. He had slightly tanned skin, and there was red paint running in a straight line from his eyes to the sides of his chin. On his forehead was an iron headband which had the kanji for 'Toad' **(Confirm plz)** inscribed on it. Finally, he wore a green vest on top of a mesh shirt.

"Got caught peeping again, Jiraiya-sama?" Kakashi grinned.

"Yeah…" Jiraiya sighed. "I decide to come back in order to deliver some important information to Sarutobi-sensei, when this brat pulls a henge and makes me stumble back into the girl's bath." He suddenly looked at Naruto in suspicion. "Speaking of which… You look familiar…"

"I must have one of those faces," Naruto laughed as he rubbed the back of his head. _**"Oh look, it's that pervert… I thought Hikari disabled him when he jumped into the girls' bath…"**_

"_I guess not… Just our luck that he turns out to be the Toad Sannin, Jiraiya…"_

"Huh, I guess so…" Jiraiya laughed, and put a bill down to pay for his ramen. "See you later Kakashi-san, Gaki."

"Later, ero-sennin," Naruto and Hikari snickered, and Kakashi looked at them for a moment, before he took out an orange book.

"He's not _an_ ero-sennin," Kakashi grinned, "He's _the_ ero-sennin."

"I don't know…" Naruto frowned for a moment. "I think Orochimaru was _the_ ero-sennin. He _did_ go after men."

Naruto and company began to laugh, and they dug into the food, quickly finishing it all. Kakashi turned to Hikari and Naruto, and began to grin. "I hope you guys do well on the test tomorrow, I really wouldn't want to fail you."

"It's not us you should worry about," Hikari replied. "Sasuke-temee is on a path of destruction, literally. He will stop at nothing to kill Itachi, and I doubt he'll even care if he dies along the way."

"Yes…" Kakashi sighed. "It would be easier if Itachi hadn't done all this…"

"That's not necessarily true, though…" Naruto sighed. "I was told that the Uchiha clan hated the Kyuubi, right?"

Kakashi's eye widened, "Where are you going with this?"

"Interestingly enough, most of the attacks on me… originated from people with the Sharingan…"

Kakashi lowered his head in thought. "I suppose there is a silver lining to every cloud…"

"That's not all, sensei…" Hikari cut between the two of them. "In fact, they were overly proud of their Sharingan, and even relied on it in battles. Truth be told, the Sharingan isn't even that great."

"What do you mean?" Kakashi asked, wondering why Hikari would have such a strong stance on the Uchiha clan.

"The Sharingan lulled them into a sense of laziness, and allowed them to believe that they were the best. In reality, the Sharingan only allows memorization of the technique. It's pointless to memorize a technique if you haven't learnt it."

A small grin spread across Kakashi's face, and his eyelids tilted a little, indicating he was smiling. "I see… That's an interesting opinion, Hikari-san. Thanks for the information."

"No problem, Kakashi-sensei," Hikari smiled, "Anyways, you might as well get going. Don't you have to get lost on the road of life?"

Knowing grins spread on the faces of Naruto, Kakashi, and Hikari. "I suppose I do…" Kakashi laughed. "Good luck on your test. If anything, at least make sure the two of you pass."

Naruto nodded in acknowledgement, while Hikari continued smiling. Kakashi waved to the two of them and jumped onto one of the rooftops, heading in the general direction of a memorial. Naruto and Hikari began walking towards their apartment, and Naruto spoke up, breaking the peaceful silence. "We've changed a lot, haven't we…?"

Hikari nodded, "We have… but in what way?"

"I suppose that's the problem, isn't it?" Naruto sighed. "It's not as if we can just examine ourselves…"

"It's for the best, isn't it? If we know how much we've grown, we'll assume that we'll grow at the same rate."

"I suppose, but I don't see how that's a problem… Unless it lulls us into a false sense of security, causing us to subconsciously let up on training…" Naruto grinned.

'_**To think that Konoha was willing to abandon him,'**__ Hitomi rolled her eyes. __**"Sometimes, humans are such idiots…"**_

"More or less," Hikari shrugged. "So, do you want dibs, or can I?"

Naruto grinned, "Knock yourself out. Or rather, knock _him_ out." Naruto pointed towards a drunken man who had been following them. One look revealed that he was hiding a knife or some other weapon in his sleeve. Naruto winced as he watched the man do what most villagers always did.

"Yer demon loverrr…" The man slurred, as he moved from side to side.

"What if I am?" Hikari asked, placing one hand upon her hip; close to her kunai pouch.

"I'ma finish whatt tehh Yonn… Startedd…." He groaned and threw the knife at Naruto. Naruto rolled his eyes as the knife missed him by 10 feet.

Hikari threw a kunai at the man, grazing his wrist. He cried out in pain as blood came spurting out. When Hikari went to pick up her kunai, she was stopped by 2 ANBU.

"What happened here?" One of them asked.

"This man attacked my friend and me, and so I retaliated," Hikari replied. The ANBU looked at the scene, before he noticed the knife on the floor.

"Alright, you're free to go…" The other ANBU sighed, as he began to cleanup the mess.

Naruto and Hikari walked down the streets, until they reached a rundown apartment building. There was graffiti all over the walls, most words relating to demons. Many of the windows had been broken, and the glass was thus jagged. Naruto rolled his eyes as he noticed the newly broken windows. "Last I checked, demons retaliated whenever their dens were attacked."

Hikari rolled her eyes, "They're _obviously_ idiots. First, you get attacked by a giant fuzzy fox."

"_**Hey! I'm not fuzzy!" **__Hitomi protested, trying to break one of the bars so she could run out._

"Uhh, she says she's not fuzzy."

"Alright. They get attacked by a giant fox, and then it's sealed inside a kid. What's the point of harming the kid? Honestly, they even have the nerve to say they're doing it for the Yondaime…" She narrowed her eyes in frustration. "It's just not fair!"

Naruto gave a wry smile, and patted her on the back. "I don't mind. After all, the way I see it… The best payback is indifference."

"I know, but still…" She sighed, and looked at the building again. "It's just unfair that they're punishing you for the sins of another…"

"Well, that's just my fate…" Naruto grinned. Hikari remained silent, and the two of them walked into the apartment.

Compared to the outside, the inside was quite tidy. There were various belongings on the shelves, and there was a large seal adorning the entire floor. There were two beds, on opposite sides of the room, and they both had blue bed sheets. In the kitchen, there was a single, small refrigerator which contained cartons of milk and various vegetables. Upon further inspection, it was proved that the vegetables were actually hollow, containing kunai which could be used in an emergency.

Naruto looked at the clock, and set the alarm for 7:15 A.M. "Anyways, I'm turning in. Night, Hikari-chan."

"Goodnight, Naruto-kun," Hikari smiled, and she went to a lone desk in the corner. She took a small scroll out of the bottom, and began to write on it, and occasionally correct the writing.

Naruto formed a seal and whispered, "**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."** Immediately, two clones of him formed. He gave those two clones orders, and decided it was time to sleep.

The next morning, Naruto woke up with a headache, and he groaned. After a minute of laying on the bed, he finally managed to pull himself up, and get ready. Naruto ate a light breakfast, consisting of milk, as well as a little cereal which Hikari had bought. Finally, he looked at the clock, noticing it was 7:45. Naruto grinned as he jumped out the window, holding a piece of toast in his mouth. Naruto jumped across the rooftops, and quickly reached the training grounds.

Naruto noticed Sasuke lifelessly sitting on the tree trunk, and Hikari polishing a crimson kunai. Naruto walked towards Hikari, and sat down beside her. "So, it's still red?"

"I guess blood stains pretty well…" Hikari replied absentmindedly. While she was polishing the kunai, she continued to stare at it, her eyes drawn into the various textures and shapes.

Naruto just looked up at the clouds, and waited for Kakashi to arrive. Finally, at exactly 8:00, Kakashi appeared in a puff of smoke. "Sorry about that," Kakashi rubbed his head. "I got lost on the road of life."

Naruto grinned, "I know what you mean… It's really annoying to get lost there."

"Don't forget annoying," Hikari added, finally breaking out of her trance. She quickly pocketed the kunai, and stood up.

"Well, I'm sure you guys want to know about this test… Simply put, I have two bells." Kakashi pointed to the bells on his person. "You need a bell to pass. If you fail, you'll get sent back to the academy, and you'll have to retry the academy."

Naruto grinned, "This'll be fun."

"Immensely," Hikari added a knowing grin prevalent on her face.

"Alright, you have 2 hours…" Kakashi yelled. At this point, Sasuke stood up, and tensed his leg muscles. "Starting... Now!" Sasuke jumped into hiding, followed by Hikari. Naruto remained, staring at Kakashi.

"I suppose I shouldn't be hiding, should I?" Naruto gave Kakashi a knowing grin. "Except… I don't think that'd be very much fun."

Kakashi looked at Naruto for a moment, and he shifted his position. Naruto immediately brought a kunai out, and even Kakashi was surprised at his speed. Kakashi held up a hand in surrender, and he took out a yellow book.

"Woah! Is that the collector's edition of Icha Icha?!" Naruto grinned, and he began to read over Kakashi's shoulder. "Wow, ero-sennin is a genius…" Naruto said, after a couple pages.

"Definitely," Kakashi replied. Kakashi continued to read the book, and when Naruto suddenly tried to grab a bell, Kakashi kicked him away. Naruto rolled his eyes, and he pushed off, making it to Kakashi's position in one leap. Kakashi brought his own kunai out, and blocked Naruto's attack, pushing him back at the same time. Naruto began to struggle, and at that point, three shuriken were sent flying towards Kakashi. Kakashi jumped out of the way, only to find that the shuriken were following him. He silently cursed, and twisted his body to dodge the shuriken.

Naruto threw his kunai where Kakashi was going to land. The kunai was underneath Kakashi's boot, and so he kicked off of it. Kakashi suddenly noticed the explosive tag on the kunai, and he quickly performed a hand sign. "Well, that was fun…" Naruto sighed. At that point, Kakashi rushed out of the bushes, towards Naruto. His hands were clasped together, and a single finger was protruding.

"**Thousand Years of Death!"** Kakashi cried out, and he brought his fingers forward towards Naruto.

"Kinky…" Naruto grinned, and right before Kakashi was about to hit Naruto, he escaped, leaving a smoke bomb in his place. Kakashi looked around for the two of them, and was surprised to find that he couldn't sense Hikari.

In the trees, Hikari jumped towards Naruto, giving him a thumb-up gesture. She passed him one of the bells she'd gotten, and Naruto placed it in his pocket. "Time to have fun…" Naruto grinned.

Sasuke had watched the fight, and he was fuming. _'Why is that dobe the one who was winning? He doesn't even have a clan!'_ His eyes widened when he saw Kakashi plop down beside him.

"Yo," Kakashi waved at Sasuke, and he began to form seals. A second later, he yelled out, **"****Doton: Shinjū Zanshu no Jutsu! (****Earth Style: Groundhog Technique Decapitation)"**

Sasuke's eyes widened as he was pulled belowground, with only his head remaining above ground. "Damn you! Release me!"

Kakashi looked at Sasuke for a moment, "Nope."

"What do you mean?! You're my teacher!" Sasuke yelled, glaring at Kakashi.

"I won't always be here. Besides… This is a test. I'm your enemy right now," Kakashi nodded, and he leaped into the trees. Sasuke scowled at Kakashi's departing figure.

Naruto and Hikari stood back to back in a clearing, each holding a kunai in one hand. Kakashi looked at the two of them for a moment, analyzing their defence. _'Hmm… There's vulnerability at Naruto's left, and Hikari's right… that's a little too convenient for me…'_ Kakashi formed a seal, causing an identical clone to appear. Kakashi and the clone jumped out at the same time, and each attacked the vulnerabilities available.

When Kakashi's kunai came in, Naruto grinned, as he and Hikari brought their hands up in tandem. **"Bakuhatsu Bunshin no Jutsu! (Exploding Clone no Jutsu)" **They yelled in tandem. Kakashi grimaced, as both of them exploded in a colourful display of red and blue. Kakashi winced as he flew back, and he seemed awestruck for a moment. _'These two aren't any mere genin…'_

Kakashi was broken out of his thoughts by Naruto, who charged straight at Kakashi. Kakashi readied himself to block, but Naruto simply placed his hands on the ground and used them to catapult above Kakashi. Kakashi watched Naruto suspiciously. At the apex of his jump, Naruto threw a kunai towards Kakashi, which Kakashi blocked. Kakashi suddenly jumped to the side, dodging Hikari's attack. "Interesting…" Kakashi mumbled, a small smile forming on his face. _'You know, these two are pretty good… In fact, they make up for Sasuke… Sasuke?!'_

"Hey, uh… did you free Sasuke?" Kakashi asked, and he winced as he saw Naruto and Hikari look at each other expectantly.

"I don't think so…?" Naruto answered. Before Kakashi could roll his eyes, Naruto threw a three pronged kunai at Kakashi. Kakashi paused at the sight of the kunai, giving Naruto enough time to close in for an attack. Luckily, Kakashi snapped out of it quickly enough to dodge Naruto's attack… and land into a trap.

Naruto looked at Kakashi for a moment, and offered him a hand up. Suddenly, Kakashi slashed Naruto with his kunai, and Naruto disappeared in a puff of smoke. Kakashi barely managed to get out of the pit.

"That's hilarious!" One of the onlookers commented.

"It's a shame, though. The so-called demon is the one who's actually fighting, while the Uchiha _prodigy_ is _over his head_."

"Just goes to show you, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, but that won't ease the council _whatsoever_… Wait, what's he doing?"

Back at the fight, Naruto and Hikari were both running towards Kakashi. Kakashi sighed. "I hope you two can forgive me for this…" Before they could reply, Kakashi formed hand seals nearly instantly, and yelled out, "_**Magen: Narakumi no Jutsu! (**_**Demonic Illusion: Death Mirage Jutsu)**_"_

Hikari collapsed, in pain, while Naruto continued on. Naruto paused for a moment, but gritted his teeth and continued.

"_Natsuko-chan…" A dying boy said, his red eyes flashing amongst the darkness. Natsuko gritted her teeth and brought her hands together._

"**KAI!" **Hikari shouted, causing the illusion to disappear. Kakashi looked at Hikari in concern, when Naruto ran managed to get a hit in. Kakashi disappeared in a puff of smoke, and Hikari collapsed on the ground.

"Hikari-chan…" Naruto slowly walked towards her, and looked her straight in the eyes. "Are you alright…?"

"I'm…" She blinked, taking deep breaths. "I'm fine," She finally replied. "I just let my guard down…"

"What did you see?" Naruto slowly sat down beside her, hoping she wasn't going into shock.

"I saw… the death of somebody close to me…" Hikari replied, after a moment's pause.

"I see…" Naruto grimaced, "Do you want to stop?"

"No!" Hikari yelled, "I'm fine…"

"Well, isn't this touching?" Sasuke sneered, as he walked towards the two of them. "I guess the dobe and his _girlfriend_ can't take a little fight."

Naruto snarled, "Are you sure you want to try that, Sasuke?"

Sasuke smirked, "Of course I am. It's not as if you could even touch me."

Naruto grinned suddenly, and he seemed to disappear. Sasuke looked around frantically, his confidence going down the drain. He couldn't even see any footprints, or disturbed grass… it was almost as if Naruto _vanished_…

Suddenly, Sasuke got hit in the chest, causing him to fall back onto the ground. Sasuke then received three consecutive cuts, each of them on his cheek. Naruto became visible again, standing beside Hikari. "You overestimate your own abilities, with no idea of the depth of my own. And look at you now, grovelling in the dirt!"

Sasuke grimaced, "That was a lucky shot, dobe."

"If you say so, temee. It's not as if I'll care when you get sent back to the academy," Naruto sneered. He then helped Hikari up, and the two of them jumped towards the clearing in which the exam had started. As soon as the two of them reached there, the bell rang, and Kakashi appeared.

"Well, looks like time's up…" Kakashi grimaced, as he looked at the three of them. "I guess… _you fail!_"

Naruto looked at Kakashi for a moment, and tilted his head. "The objective was to get a bell, right?"

"Yes…" Kakashi replied, a small smile forming on his face.

Naruto held out a bell towards Kakashi, "Here you go."

Kakashi looked expectantly at Hikari, who searched her pockets for the bell. Her eyes suddenly widened when she couldn't find it. Naruto looked at Hikari for a moment, and came to a decision.

"Here you go, Hikari-chan," Naruto grinned, and handed his bell to her.

"I can't accept this…" Hikari frowned, and she pushed the bell back towards Naruto.

"I insist," Naruto replied, as he placed the bell in her hands.

"Well…" Kakashi looked at Naruto and Hikari for a moment. Suddenly, Sasuke appeared in the clearing, his breathing coming in short gasps.

"I have a bell!" He proclaimed. Sasuke pulled a bell out of his pocket and handed it towards Kakashi.

Naruto narrowed his eyes, "You stole Hikari-chan's bell?"

"I didn't steal anything," Sasuke snorted, "Besides, it's not as if you two were good enough to get a bell."

Kakashi looked at the three of them for a moment, and sighed. "In light of recent developments… Sasuke…" Sasuke perked up at his name. "You fail." Sasuke was about to protest, when Kakashi continued. "Naruto and Hikari… You pass," Kakashi gave them an eye-smile, which they returned (with their lips _and_ eyes!)

"You've got to be kidding me!" Sasuke scoffed. "The objective was to get a bell, wasn't it?!"

"Actually, that was only one of the objectives. It was simply there to test your skills. Naruto and Hikari passed that portion of the exam, as did you," Kakashi pinched the bridge of his nose through his mask. "The second part required teamwork, which Naruto and Hikari showed. _You_ on the other hand, backstabbed your team, and you stole the bell from one of your team mates. In reality, I was prepared to pass all three of you until you showed up with the stolen bell."

Sasuke let out a frustrated growl as he charged Kakashi. Kakashi easily disarmed Sasuke, and placed his arm behind his back _very_ painfully. "Look, Sasuke. You might get special treatment from the council because of your heritage, but there are _no_ shortcuts in life!" Kakashi applied pressure to Sasuke's arm. "You should learn that lesson well. It was one that your brother was _very_ well-acquainted with."

Sasuke growled at the mere mention of his brother, and tried to attack Kakashi again, to no avail. Suddenly, two figures appeared in front of Kakashi, and they looked at the situation. "Would you like us to present your testimony to the Hokage, Kakashi-senpai?"

"If you could," Kakashi replied. "Could one of you take the Uchiha back? I don't want him losing a fight to one of his former-team-mates, as I know they won't be very merciful."

"Of course," One of the figures bowed and took Sasuke with him.

"Alright you two, I'll expect to see you at that bridge tomorrow," Kakashi pointed towards a bridge which was shrouded in mist. Naruto and Hikari nodded.

Kakashi went to the Hokage tower with the ANBU in pursuit. Finally, once he'd reached the tower, the Hokage called for his report. "Team 7 has partially passed, Hokage-sama."

"So _he_ held them back, then?" Sarutobi sighed as he took a whiff of his pipe. "Very well, I'll talk it over with the council and see if they allow a two-man team. Maybe they'll use that as an excuse to give Naruto and his friend suicidal missions."

Kakashi grimaced at that. He was no stranger to suicidal missions, nor were any of his friends. "Of course, Hokage-sama. Yamato, could you please give the council your testimony?"

"Yes, I will, Kakashi-senpai," Yamato bowed, and followed the Hokage out of the room.

To Be Continued.

* * *

**So basically, what do you think I should do with the council? Should I show their meeting, or just the result? What would the plausible result be? What'll happen next chapter?**

**Oh, btw... regarding their C-Rank mission. I've decided not to go for the Land of Waves in that one. It's too overused. Maybe that'll be their second C-Rank?**

**(Ideas plox. My friend gave me an idea for the C-Rank, and it sounds interesting, but he didn't give me any ideas for the actual mission. Just the mishaps.)**

**Mmk, laterz guys :)  
**


	3. A Wild Goose er, Naruto Chase

"_So __he__ held them back, then?" Sarutobi sighed as he took a whiff of his pipe. "Very well, I'll talk it over with the council and see if they allow a two-man team. Maybe they'll use that as an excuse to give Naruto and his friend suicidal missions."_

_Kakashi grimaced at that. He was no stranger to suicidal missions, nor were any of his friends. "Of course, Hokage-sama. Yamato, could you please give the council your testimony?"_

"_Yes, I will, Kakashi-senpai," Yamato bowed, and followed the Hokage out of the room._

Kakashi sighed as he followed the two of them to the location of the nearest council meeting. It was a well known fact that Kakashi and councillors did not mix. After what seemed like an eternity, the trio stopped outside a large pair of double doors, and Sarutobi threw the doors open. The councillors immediately stopped their bickering, and waited to hear the results.

"Uchiha Sasuke has failed the genin test," Sarutobi proclaimed, causing the council to heavily protest.

"Don't you mean Team 7 has failed?" Aburame Shibi asked, as he looked straight at Sarutobi through his dark lenses.

"That's where I come in," Kakashi faked an eye-smile. "Uzumaki Naruto, and Uzumaki Hikari were easily able to grasp the true meaning of the test, and they even managed to get two bells. Uchiha Sasuke on the other hand; was easily incapacitated, and he stole a bell from one of his team mates."

"The objective of this test was to get the bells, right?" Danzo asked, likely planning something.

"That was an objective, but it was not the true objective. The true objective of this test was teamwork. Something which Naruto and Hikari showed time and time again. The two of them nearly managed to put me in the hospital for a couple of days."

"If the objective was to get the bells, then why don't you make Sasuke a genin? It matters not _how_ they get the bells, am I correct?" Danzo asked, ignoring the second part of Kakashi's sentence.

"No, you're not," Kakashi replied. "I'm afraid that Sasuke will not be on my team. Thus, I would like to request that I am allowed to lead a two-man team, comprised of Uzumaki Naruto, and Uzumaki Hikari."

The council began yelling in protest again, until Danzo slammed his cane on the ground. "We will grant your request, but on one condition…"

The next day, Naruto and Hikari were making their way to the bridge. The two of them stopped in awe, when they saw that Kakashi was waiting for them. Naruto blinked in disbelief, and brought his hands together, **"KAI!"**

Kakashi remained standing on the bridge, and after a moment's pause, the two of them walked up to him. "Alright, it turns out that the council allowed you two to pass, and be on my team…"

"Why do I sense a 'but'?" Naruto asked suspiciously.

"The condition is that you two have to complete a C-Rank mission… on your own," Kakashi frowned despite the mask. "You two can reject this condition if you want…"

The two of them stood their ground, and the only noise available was the wind. "No," Naruto stated with conviction in his eyes.

"We won't back down," Hikari finished. "I swore that I would never give up, and I will honour my word."

"Just as I will honour mine," Naruto nodded.

Kakashi looked sad for a moment, but then he began to cheer up. "You're just like my old team mates," He sighed. "Alright, follow me. At the very least, I'll take you to the Hokage for the mission briefing."

Naruto and Hikari obediently followed Kakashi, each of them lost in their own thoughts. Hikari was thinking about the council, wondering why they would let Sasuke stay as an academy student. Naruto was also thinking about Sasuke, but instead, he was recalling why Sasuke was hated by the two of them.

_---Flashback---_

_"Well, if it isn't the dobe," Sasuke mocked the two of them. Naruto turned to stare at Sasuke._

_"What do you want, temee?" Naruto grinned. "Wasn't kicking your ass enough for you?"_

_"That was a lucky shot, dobe. If it wasn't for your girlfriend, you wouldn't even have your eyes at the moment," Sasuke scowled._

_"I rely on my own power, Sasuke."_

_"What little there is," Sasuke made a fake sigh. "It's not as if somebody like you could beat a Uchiha. We're the best of the best."_

_"Really, Sasuke?" Naruto laughed. "All you do is boast. Let me guess, next you're going to tell me that you killed Itachi, who managed to kill 'the best of the best'."_

_Sasuke gritted his teeth, "I wouldn't tell you anything, dobe. Just remember that _I'm_ better than you." Sasuke walked away, and Hikari came out from behind a tree._

_"He hides behind his clan name…" She clenched her fist. "I hate people like him. People who think they're better than others just because of their birth… Just because…"_

_---End Flashback---_

"The Hokage will see you now," Sarutobi's secretary said, giving Naruto a small smile. Naruto grinned back, and the three of them entered the room. Sarutobi looked at Naruto for a moment, and sighed.

"Alright, your mission is to retrieve an important scroll from the inside of a bandit's camp. The rest is up to you…"

"Oji-san, is there a problem?" Naruto asked, somewhat wary of the mission.

"While you're out of the village, don't trust anyone," He replied, skilfully evading the question. "As far as we know, the council will use this as an opportunity to have you killed."

Naruto grinned, "Neither of us will die. After all, I have too much work to die."

Sarutobi laughed, "My sentiments exactly. I hope to see you soon, Naruto. You too, Hikari-san." Sarutobi handed the two of them a scroll with the mission details on it, and they went to the gate.

"See you later Oji-san," Naruto waved as he went out of the door. Hikari bowed, and the two of them began their trip to the gate. Luckily, both of them already had all the supplies they'd needed, and it seemed as if it would only be a two day mission. When the two of them reached the gate, they handed their scroll to the man at the booth.

"A C-Rank…?" He scrutinized the scroll for a moment. "Alright… Good luck, you two."

The two of them nodded as they took the scroll back, and they followed the path straight outside the gate. Naruto looked around in awe. He'd never actually left Konoha until today! The trees were so much larger than they'd seemed while inside the village. His musings were interrupted when he noticed a small patch of mud, among a road without dirt.

Hikari seemed to notice the mud as well, and she shifted her position slightly so that she could grab any weapons if needed. This caution was proved useful, when three shinobi exploded out of the mud.

"Well, it looks like you two are in for some bad luck…" The first one grinned, as he shifted his turquoise uniform.

"I hope you don't hold it against us…" The second one laughed.

"The Earth Brothers!" The third one yelled out, and all three of them shifted into a pose. Naruto and Hikari sweatdropped, staring at the three shinobi.

"You know what…?" Naruto brought his left hand up to form a seal. The eyes of the three brothers bugged out, as Naruto yelled, **"Bitchslap no Jutsu!"**

Immediately, three Naruto clones appeared out of nowhere and bitchslapped the three brothers together, simultaneously placing three seals upon them. Naruto and Hikari jumped out of the way, when all three clones brought their hands up to form a seal. **"Bakuhatsu no Jutsu!"**

The clones disappeared in a puff of smoke, as the brothers exploded, causing some of the trees to topple over and hit them. Hikari stared in disbelief, and she began laughing hysterically. "You beat them with one jutsu!"

"Three actually…" Naruto pouted.

"When did bitchslapping become a jutsu?" Hikari asked.

"Around the same time that it became commonplace to shove a handsign up your opponent's ass…" Naruto muttered in loathing.

Hikari giggled, "You have to admit that it was funny when Kakashi hit the smoke bomb and his fingers turned black."

"I'll concede that," Naruto laughed. "It was lucky that you threw it in the air when I was looking for something to replace me."

"Luck had nothing to do with it," Hikari rolled her eyes as they continued down the path. Naruto sighed when he saw a large tree which had no branches. He threw a reinforced kunai, of his own design, at the tree; causing it to split in half. When the tree split in half, it revealed an ANBU who had been tailing them for a while.

"Uhh… I have some information from the Hokage…" The ANBU rubbed his head in embarrassment. Hikari stared at the ANBU's mask, before she threw a kunai which he quickly dodged. "Well, I guess we'll have to do this the hard way…" He quickly brought his hands up and yelled, **"Chirigakure no Jutsu! (Art of Hiding in the Dust)" (I made this myself :D)**

Suddenly, great amounts of dust appeared in the air, and Naruto grimaced as some of it managed to make it to his eyes. Hikari was luckier, as she'd sensed the incoming Jutsu, and had quickly closed her eyes.

"Sorry that I have to do this, kiddo. I was ordered to get rid of you. Nothing personal," The ANBU laughed as he struck Naruto in his head with a kunai. Naruto collapsed on the ground, coughing. Finally, the shinobi prepared to deal the killing blow, when Hikari snuck behind him, and plunged her kunai through his neck. The results were instantaneous, as he collapsed to the ground, bleeding. Immediately, the dust settled, allowing them to see the man's corpse… Which had vanished.

"That's weird…" Hikari commented, while Naruto tried to remove all the dust from his throat.

"I think he used a replacement… or maybe he was a clone?" Naruto pointed out, after he'd finally cleared his throat. Hikari shrugged in response, and the two of them continued down 'The Path of Ambush'.

After nearly an eternity of travelling, they reached their goal – the bandit camp. Naruto and Hikari observed it from a hill, noting the guard arrangement, and various other important pieces of information. Finally, when it seemed that all the bandits had gone to sleep, Naruto and Hikari began to discuss their plan.

"It looks like its wide open now, but we still don't know the location of that scroll…" She muttered as she stared at the two guards; sitting around a campfire.

"We don't have enough time for reconnaissance; they had to give us a time limit…" Naruto cursed.

"So, are you ready to charge in then?" Hikari asked with a small grin on her face.

"Ready when you are."

"Let's go," Hikari commanded. The two of them immediately ran towards the center of the camp, and quickly slit the throats of the two guards. Naruto then formed multiple Kage Bunshin in order to search the camp. In a matter of minutes, Naruto found the location of the scroll, and he beckoned for Hikari to follow him. They quietly snuck to a large tent and they slowly entered.

As soon as the two of them were inside the tent, a kunai went flying in their direction. Hikari managed to duck, but Naruto wasn't as lucky, and he had a kunai stuck in his shoulder. "Naruto-kun!" Hikari hissed, as soon as she saw the kunai.

"I'm fine," Naruto waved his hand dismissively. He tore the kunai out from his shoulder, causing blood to drip to the floor. He threw the kunai towards his attacker, causing some of his blood to drop on the man. The man quickly dodged, and appraised Naruto.

"Interesting…" He grinned, "I think you'll do fine…"

Immediately, he rushed towards Naruto, only to be blocked by Hikari. Naruto created three shadow clones, which Hikari replaced herself with. The shadow clones immediately (consecutively) punched the man in the gut, causing him to fly through the tent. Naruto looked at the scroll and frowned. "It's a fake…"

"So it was a trap," Hikari sighed. "The council is really beginning to irk me…"

"Well, we might as well bring back the head of this man," Naruto grinned. He took out a large kunai, and slowly walked towards the man, who was currently lying on the floor. "I hope you don't mind," Naruto commented. Before either of them could move, the man burst into black flames, and all of his remains disappeared.

"_**Get out of there!" **__Hitomi yelled._

Naruto's eyes widened and he immediately grabbed Hikari's hand and jumped. As soon as their feet left the ground, the camp burst into flames and exploded. Luckily, Naruto had predicted this, and so his sandals were perfectly positioned to use the flames to propel them further. Naruto landed with a wince, but absorbed the brute of the impact so that Hikari could land without breaking an ankle.

As soon as the two of them landed, they were assaulted by a barrage of shuriken and kunai. Naruto stared at the kunai as they went through him. _'Bunshin no Jutsu wins…'_ Naruto grinned.

As the shinobi were trying to figure out where Naruto was, they were quickly taken care of by Naruto's clones. "That was a disappointment," Hikari sighed.

Naruto nodded in assent. "That's true, but…" He held up a scroll. "Look what I found."

"Looks like we can go back," Hikari giggled slightly. "I can't believe they thought that chunin-level shinobi disguised as Jounin and ANBU would be able to take us…"

"It's their fault for underestimating us," Naruto replied. Hikari nodded, and the two of them began to walk towards Konoha. After a surprisingly short walk, they were greeted by the looming gates of Konoha, illuminated by the setting sun.

"Beautiful…" Hikari whispered, staring at the scene. The gates were shadowed perfectly by the sun, and the sky seemed to be melting into molten gold. She slowly turned towards Naruto and blushed slightly. She quickly turned her head to face the gate, as Naruto turned his head to face hers. His breath hitched in his chest, and he forced himself to exhale.

"W-well, we should go in…" Naruto said, trying to contain his raging blush.

"Y-yeah…" Hikari replied. The two of them walked through the gate just as it was closing, and they showed their mission information to the chunin who was on gate duty. He nodded, and they went to the Hokage's office to report their mission as successful.

"Well, I'm surprised at the amount of interference you two received…" Sarutobi frowned. "It's almost as if _somebody_ was trying to make an attempt on your lives…"

"I wonder who'd want us dead..." Naruto pretended to frown for a moment. "Anyways, if that's all, I'd like to go train."

"Of course," Sarutobi gave Naruto a knowing smile. "Enjoy your training."

Naruto walked out of the room, where Hikari was waiting; seemingly in deep thought. "Hikari-chan?" Naruto prodded, "It's not like you to be spaced out."

"Oh, I'm fine." She gave Naruto a reassuring grin, which he wholeheartedly returned. The two of them walked to training ground 44, otherwise known as the 'Forest of Death'.

"How's my defence against the Sharingan coming along?" Naruto asked, considering he _didn't_ have the Sharingan.

"It's doing well, but you're using too little chakra," Hikari replied. She sent some of her chakra to her eyes, causing the iris to become red, and the pupil to shift into a spiral. After a moment, the pupil changed into three comma-like objects.

Naruto began to concentrate, and as Hikari watched, his chakra began to move through his body, and it was slowly released through various points in his body, until his body took on a blue tinge. As more and more chakra was being released, the two of them suddenly stopped, as Hikari's eyes reverted back to their usual onyx; hidden by the blue contact lenses she was wearing.

"What is it?" Naruto asked the air.

"Well, I felt your chakra levels begin to rise, and I thought something was wrong," Kakashi replied as he walked out from behind a tree.

"I'm fine actually. I'm just working on a defence against the Sharingan so that my techniques can't be copied," Naruto explained.

"Hmm… By constantly releasing chakra, it should cause your body to gain an unearthly glow in the Sharingan's view; making it harder for your seals to be seen. So I'm guessing that you'd be releasing even _more_ chakra than recommended just so that you look like a bright flash?" Kakashi deduced.

"Yeah, but I'm not quite there yet," Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"Well, good luck with that. See you Naruto, Hikari-san." Kakashi waved and then jumped off into the distance.

Hikari sighed, and her eyes regained the Sharingan, as Naruto attempted to release his chakra again. The rate at which it was released quickly began to speed up, until it was visible to the naked eye. Hikari looked in awe as his chakra formed a spiral around his body. "Naruto-kun…" Hikari spoke up.

Naruto stopped releasing his chakra, and looked up at Hitomi. She could easily see the physical and mental strain he was experiencing, simply from having to control that much chakra. "Yeah?"

"I think… that could probably double as a shield," Hikari said.

Naruto's eyebrows raised, "A shield? That sounds pretty convenient…"

"Yeah, but as far as I can see, it would be a huge problem since you're actually releasing your chakra with no goal in mind. You should probably control it and make it fit around your body so that there's no excess used."

"Hmm…" Naruto seemed to be in deep thought for a moment. _"Hey Hitomi-chan, could you give me some chakra?"_ Naruto mentally asked Hitomi. She gave an assenting grumble, and Naruto felt her chakra refill his reserves. "I think we should do that later, though. I've got to jog around Konoha 30 times," Naruto sighed.

"Sounds like fun," Hikari commented. Naruto pouted as she broke out into a grin. "I'll join you; I think I need the stamina."

"You have even more stamina than I do!" Naruto whined.

"No, I simply _use_ more of my stamina than you," Hikari retorted.

Naruto had no comeback for that, and so the two of them began to jog in silence. At the 3rd lap, Naruto began to sweat. By the 5th lap, Naruto's breathing became somewhat laboured. On the 10th lap, Naruto started to feel faint. Finally, he was at the 30th lap, when he saw two men catch up to him and Hikari.

The two of them seemed to be exact clones, except one of them was smaller. "Yosh, Gai-sensei! If I don't do 30 laps around Konoha, I'll carry a boulder from here to Suna 3 times!" The smaller one proclaimed.

"Yosh, Lee! Let us run!" The taller one, Gai, yelled. Naruto and Hikari tried their best to hold in their laughter. Suddenly, the two men disappeared in green blurs, and caught up to Hikari and Naruto.

"Lee! Their flames of youth burn brightly!" Gai commented.

"Yosh! You will be my eternal rival!" Lee proclaimed, while pointing at Hikari. Naruto stared in morbid fascination, as the two men began to hug.

"Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!" Tears began streaming down their faces.

"Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!" They finally embraced, and a sunset miraculously appeared, while a wave came out of nowhere and crashed, just feet away from the two of them.

Naruto began to wince, while Hikari looked as if she were going to throw up. **"KAI!" **Naruto yelled. When nothing changed, he began to panic. **"KAI! KAI! KAI! KAIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!!!!"**

Kakashi suddenly joined the quartet, and met pace with them. "It can't be expelled," he sighed. "I've tried millions of times."

"Kakashi! My eternal rival!" Gai called out, breaking away from the hug.

"Crap. See you later," Kakashi jumped off.

"He's so hip! I challenge you, eternal rival! If I don't win, I'll run around Konoha 500 times on my hands!" Gai cried out as he leaped after Kakashi.

"Yosh, eternal rival! I challenge you!" Lee called, as he stared at Hikari.

"Hmm? Did you say something?" Hikari asked, feigning deafness.

"Yosh! My eternal rival is so hip!" Lee proclaimed, as he began ranting about challenges and penalties.

"Let's run," Naruto whispered to Hikari. As soon as he said that, the two of them ran as fast as their legs could take them. When Sarutobi looked down from his window and saw an orange flash, followed by a black flash, he was sure the two were going for ramen.

Ironically, Naruto and Hikari lost Lee around Ichiraku's, and so they went in to eat.

"Hey Naruto, how's life on Sasuke's team?" Chouji asked, as Naruto sat beside him.

"I wouldn't know," Naruto grinned.

"He failed," Hikari explained to a confused Chouji.

"I thought there had to be teams of three?" Shikamaru pointed out, as he adjusted his pineapple-shaped hair.

"They made an exception for us," Naruto shrugged. "Could I have the usual?"

"Coming right up," Teuchi grinned as he began to get more ingredients. Everybody knew that when Naruto, Hikari and Chouji were there at the same time, it took him nearly all his supplies to provide for them.

"Well, I envy you…" Shikamaru sighed. "Ino's too damn troublesome."

"Just do me a favour and don't tell her he failed," Naruto pleaded. "She'll be on my case forever, saying 'Sasuke-kun this' and 'Sasuke-kun that'."

"Isn't Sakura generally worse?" Hikari asked.

"Well yes, but she does it either way," Naruto explained.

"What was that…?" Naruto turned around in fear when he saw Sakura.

"Oh crap, I'll see you guys later," He dashed out of the stall just as Teuchi brought his ramen. Sakura prepared to go after him, when Naruto dashed back in to retrieve his ramen. He fondly stared at it for a minute, and solemnly said, "No man left behind…"

Everybody sweatdropped as Naruto ran out of the stall again, followed by Sakura. Soon, Ino joined the chase, and Hikari sighed. "I guess I have to help him…" She muttered. "Troublesome, eh Shikamaru?"

"Indeed," Shikamaru grinned as Hikari joined the chase, and managed to dissuade Sakura and Ino from pummelling Naruto.

"He insulted me!" Sakura cried.

"It's his fault that Sasuke-kun didn't pass!" Ino cried out.

"Sakura, he told the truth about you. Ino, it's _Sasuke's_ fault he failed. Was Naruto-kun taking the exam for Sasuke?" Hikari glared at the two of them.

"Well, no…" Ino frowned.

"Exactly!" Hikari cried out in frustration. Naruto looked out from a corner, with some of the ramen still in his mouth.

"I don't bully Naruto-baka! **(Did she actually call him that?)**" Sakura cried out.

"I'm sorry, could you repeat that?" Hikari asked.

"_I said_, I don't bully Naruto-ba…" Sakura paused as she noticed Naruto's 'honorific'.

"Exactly," Hikari grinned triumphantly.

Ino and Sakura walked away dejectedly, with their heads hung in shame, as Naruto sighed. "Thanks so much, Hikari-chan!"

"Well, friends look out for each other…" Hikari sighed. "I bet you enjoy being chased by girls," She suddenly grinned.

"What? No!" Naruto blushed.

"Aww, you're blushing," A mischievous glint appeared in Hikari's eyes, and Naruto backed away.

The chase resumed, except this time it was Hikari chasing Naruto. "Why me?!" Naruto cried out.

Meanwhile, Kakashi was reading his little orange book while walking through the ninja academy, when he saw Naruto in the distance. As Kakashi squinted, he could make out Naruto's shape getting bigger, and as Naruto was about to run past Kakashi, Iruka appeared and held an arm out, clothes lining Naruto. "No running in the halls!" Iruka commanded.

Naruto and Hikari sullenly slowed to a fast walk, each trying to catch up to the other. Finally, they reached the exit on the other side of the hall, and the chase continued at high speeds.

Next, they managed to run into a television station, past the location where a cooking show was recording. While they were running past, the man was trying to put a glass bowl into the microwave. Naruto and Hikari pushed him out of their way, and his glass bowl fell. Naruto ran out of the door and hid behind a pillar. "Hey, look! It's a distraction!" Naruto called, as he pointed towards the sky, where there was a trail of smoke from a plane. The trail seemed to say "Oh god! It's a distraction!"

Hikari stared open-mouthed at it, when she noticed that Naruto was trying to sneak past her. She immediately began chasing him again, and they managed to end up in the cooking show studio again. The man was again trying to get a glass bowl into the microwave, when Naruto pushed him, causing the contents to be spilled on the man's head, and the bowl to break. The two of them continued their chase throughout the entire village, when they managed to end up at the cooking studio _again_. This time, the man was prepared for them, and he held up a hand. "WAIT!" He yelled in anger. Dumbfounded, Hikari and Naruto stopped their running for a moment, and he threw the bowl onto the ground, shattering it into pieces. "Fine! GO!"

The chase resumed again, until Naruto bumped into a certain purple-haired kunoichi. She looked at Naruto for a moment, before a small grin appeared on her face. "Naruto… have you been avoiding nee-san?"

"Shit…" Naruto muttered. "Of course not, Anko-nee!"

"I didn't think so," Anko grinned. "If I find out that you were…" She brought out a kunai and slowly licked the edge of it. "We'll have to have a _private_ session…"

Naruto's eyes widened in fear, and he ran away, with only one thought in his head. _"Why ME?!"_

"_**Because you enjoy it…" **__Hitomi muttered._

To Be Continued.

---A Joke---

"**Bakuhatsu Bitchslap no Jutsu!" **Naruto cried out, as three clones emerged to Bitchslap the shinobi. As soon as their knuckles collided with the shinobi's cheeks, the knuckles of the clones began to glow, and an explosion occurred, sending Naruto and Hikari flying back. Naruto went through a tree, causing an ANBU to appear where the tree was.

"Uhh… Surprise?" The ANBU laughed slightly, as Naruto and Hikari stared at him questioningly.

---End Joke---


	4. Land of Waves

**It's here today 'cuz it's here today. 'Nuff said. Anyways, I retyped the second part of this chapter because I thought it was too easy. At first [Spoiler?]Hikari pointed out that Zabuza had an accomplice, Haku jumped out, fought Naru + Hikari; lost to a simple genjutsu... Zabuza also lost, etc[/Spoiler?]**

**Then, I changed that. Honestly, where's the fun if it's a walk in the park; right? Anyways, we get some action, some training (which we don't actually get to see) and (i think) some romance development. Nice, huh?**

**As for my other fic... I'm sure you guys know by now that I'm too lazy to have written that chapter by now. I'm only 1k in, and already lost (because it feels like utter crap to me. Hooray)**

**

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**_XxDarkfirexX: I am grateful that you typed it out. I've been considering taking a break from R+V, but then I'd get some complaints from the people over there. On the other hand, if I don't take a break, that could mean variance in the updating schedule. Too much to consider, huh? Anyways, hope you enjoy this chapter :)_

_litewarrior: I puked in my mouth when I wrote it, no worries :P. As for the 'next mission'... I don't think that's possible atm, huh? I'll see about the NEXT mission though. I've just gotta remember...  
_

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Naruto begrudgingly walked towards the bridge where he and Hikari were supposed to meet Kakashi. To his utter shock and disbelief, Kakashi was on time. _Again._

"Morning," Kakashi waved.

"Is there any reason you're on time…?" Naruto asked.

"Well…" Kakashi rubbed the back of his head. "It's a long story. Where's Hikari-san?"

"Holy crap! He's on time!" Hikari called out as she pointed towards Kakashi. Kakashi's visible eye twitched, and he audibly sighed.

"Alright, anyways… As you know, the chunin exams are coming up in two months…" Kakashi explained. Naruto nodded, as Kakashi continued. "The problem is, you have to finish a certain amount of D-Ranks to be allowed to participate."

"We haven't done any D-Ranks," Naruto sighed.

"Yes, and I talked to the Hokage about this. If we do one more C-Rank mission in lieu of the D-Ranks, he'll allow us to participate."

"Sweet!" Naruto cried out. "What're we waiting for?!"

"There's an added risk, though. Since you're a two-man team, and we all seem to have bad luck…" Kakashi rolled his eyes. "The council may see fit to send an assassin after you, Naruto."

Naruto shrugged. "I don't mind."

"Are you sure?" Kakashi asked. Naruto nodded in response, and Kakashi turned to Hikari. "How about you?"

"I'll go," Hikari replied. "Maybe it'll actually be a _real_ C-Rank this time."

Kakashi sighed. "Alright, let's go and pick up the information from the Hokage."

The trio set off to the Hokage's tower, and once inside, they were forced to wait for a few minutes while the Hokage finished up with another team. As soon as the door opened, Naruto and Hikari furrowed their eyebrows, while Kakashi frowned underneath his mask. Sasuke was walking out of the room. Wearing a hitai-ite.

"Well, dobe. I'll see you at the chunin exams," Sasuke sneered as he passed Naruto. Naruto simply stood in place, and as soon as Sasuke had passed, his lips turned upwards into a small smirk.

The three of them entered the room, and Sarutobi smiled sympathetically at Naruto. "So, you saw Sasuke then?"

"Why is he a genin?" Hikari asked angrily.

"The council found a loophole in our proceedings…" Sarutobi sighed.

"It doesn't matter," Naruto shrugged. "Overconfidence will only lead to death."

"That's the problem… We don't want to lose anymore bloodlines," Sarutobi frowned.

"What's the mission about, Hokage-sama?" Kakashi asked, veering the conversation away from Sasuke.

"You will be escorting a man to the Land of Waves," Sarutobi explained. "You can come in now.*

The three of them turned around as a man walked through the shouji (sliding paper door). He had a bottle of sake in one hand, and he was obviously inebriated, as shown by his flushed cheeks and the obvious bottle lifted to his mouth. "You give me kids? I pay you good money, and you give me kids?" He slurred. "Hey runt, are you really a ninja?"

Naruto's hand twitched towards his kunai case, and Kakashi sighed. "It's all right, I'm with them. If anything goes wrong, I'll be able to pick up the pieces."

"I am the bridge building expert, Tazuna. Once I have returned to my country, I will have all of you protect my life with yours while I complete the bridge!" He proclaimed, still staggering slightly.

Naruto rolled his eyes, and tuned out until he found himself at the gate. Naruto blinked for a moment, until he noticed that Kakashi, Hikari and Tazuna were within 3 feet of him. _'We must be setting out…'_

As the four of them began to walk, Naruto casually looked to the right. _"Do you sense that, Hitomi-chan?"_

_**"Seems like it's another A-Rank for you…"**__ Hitomi casually replied._

Naruto sighed and continued onward, when something occurred to him. "Is there a hidden village in the Land of Waves?" He asked.

Kakashi shook his head. "In most cases, hidden villages are a display of a country's power, and they're how neighbouring countries keep up relations with each other. In the case of the Land of Waves, it's hard to be influenced by any outside countries; therefore they have no need for hidden villages."

"Well, that's a disappointment," Naruto sighed.

"I'm sure we'll get to fight someday," Hikari reassuringly patted Naruto on the shoulder.

Naruto sighed as they passed a small puddle. Almost immediately, he heard the sounds of splashing, and an object flying through the air. Suddenly, a chain wrapped around Kakashi, and their assailants pulled. Kakashi was shredded to the point where there was nothing left, save for small scraps of fabric.

Suddenly, the two of them appeared behind Naruto. "One down, two to go."

Naruto jumped as the chain went flying towards him, and he sent chakra to his hands. Predictably, the two of them threw their chains towards Naruto, who grabbed them in midair. The assailants pulled on their chain, to no avail; causing bloody scratches to appear on Naruto's hands. Naruto used all his strength to yank the chains upward; however the two of them removed the chains from their wrist guard. Immediately, they went to attack Hikari, who was protecting Tazuna.

Naruto phased into existence in front of Hikari, and prepared to attack, when one of the assailants was clothes lined by Kakashi. Taking advantage of their confusion, Naruto threw a kunai at the other one, and miraculously knocked him unconscious.

"Well Naruto, Hikari… Good job," Kakashi held a thumb up, and took the other man in a headlock. "Except, they have poison on their claws. We'll have to leech that out, Naruto."

Naruto sighed. "We _could_ leave it in…"

"I'd rather not…" Kakashi rolled his eye.

"Alright. Hikari, could you pass me _that_ kunai?" Naruto asked. Hikari nodded and threw a double-edged kunai which was stained crimson. Kakashi watched in morbid fascination as Naruto threw the kunai up into the air, and clasped his hands together, causing the kunai to pass through both of his hands. Naruto's blood began to spurt out from his hands, and he slowly removed the kunai, before tossing it in the air. "Do you still want this?"

Hikari shrugged, "Why not?" Naruto threw the kunai back towards her, and she caught it with ease. Naruto sent chakra to his hands, causing them to go into a suspended state while they healed.

"Tazuna…" Kakashi turned away from Naruto. "We need to talk." Tazuna gulped as Kakashi threw the two disabled shinobi against a tree. "These two are chunin from Kirigakure no Sato…" Kakashi explained, "They are shinobi known to keep fighting no matter the cost."

"How were you able to detect our movements…?" One of them asked.

"It's been weeks since it's last rained… and the sun is out. Why would there be a puddle today?" Kakashi asked.

"Then why did you let the kids fight?" Tazuna asked, somewhat suspicious of Kakashi.

"If I were up to it, I could've killed the two in a matter of seconds," Kakashi replied. "But… I needed to know who they were targeting. Were they targeting you, or one of us? We haven't heard anything about you being targeted by shinobi. Your request was protection from armed robbers and bandits. _This_," He gestured towards the two shinobi, "Is a mission that's B-Rank or greater."

"Sensei, don't worry about it," Naruto cut in. "We knew that the chances of a misinformed mission was high."

"I'd rather not miss the chunin exams," Hikari piped in. "It'd be nice to see the look on temee's face when he loses to us."

Kakashi laughed a little. "Alright then, could we at least know why you're being targeted?"

Tazuna sighed in relief. "As I said, I'm building a bridge in the Land of Waves. I'm afraid that a certain man doesn't want this bridge to be built. A long time ago, Gato set his sights on the Land of Waves. At first, we all prospered. Yet in time, we found that his shipping business was actually a front… for illegal activities. He isolated our country from the outside world, making it hard for any of us to make a decent living, and he began to overcharge us on food… This bridge will bring peace to the Land of Waves."

Kakashi frowned. "You're talking about civil war… That's at least an A-class… maybe an S-Class…"

"Sweet!" Naruto grinned. "Don't worry about it, sensei. We can take him."

"Logically, the next opponent would be a Jounin…" Kakashi muttered, completely ignoring Naruto. He looked Hikari in the eyes for a moment, and sighed. "Alright, let's continue!"

The quartet walked until they reached a small town along the sea, where Tazuna talked to one of the fishermen. "Alright, we can get a ride from him."

All of them climbed on the boat which was handled by the fisherman, and they began to paddle through the mist. "This is pretty thick mist," Naruto commented.

After a brief pause, Tazuna murmured, "We should be able to see the bridge soon.

"If we move along the side of the bridge, we should be at the Land of Waves soon," the fisherman said.

As they continued to row, the bridge began to come into view. "That's huge…" Naruto whispered in awe.

Soon, the pier began to appear, and the quartet quietly left the boat. The fisherman nodded to all of them as he rowed back through the mist.

"Alright, take me home safely!" Tazuna commanded.

"Hai, hai…" Kakashi muttered, and they began to walk along the row of houses.

Naruto suddenly moved his head to the right and threw a kunai into the bushes. Tazuna and Kakashi stared at him while he went to retrieve a… snow rabbit. "Rabbit!" Naruto cried in depression. "I'm so sorry!" Suddenly, his eyes widened. "Wait, that's a snow rabbit. A _white_ snow rabbit…"

"Which is why you should _DUCK!_" Kakashi cried out, as a sword went flying over their heads. As it flew, it began to twirl at impossible speeds, and headed straight for Naruto. Naruto stared at the sword unblinkingly.

_"Now!" _Naruto held his hand up and reinforced it with demonic chakra. Amazingly, Naruto managed to catch the sword, and Kakashi stared at him in awe.

"Was that chakra attraction…?" Kakashi stared, dumbfounded.

"Well, yeah…" Naruto rubbed his head. "I'm not that good at it."

"Boy…" A pale-skinned man jumped out of the trees. "Give back my sword if you know what's good for you."

"You're just going to use it to kill us…" Hikari deadpanned.

"It doesn't matter! Give it back!" He cried. "I'll make you rue the day you ever stole anything from Momochi Zabuza!"

Naruto looked at Zabuza for a moment. "Hey, Hikari-chan. Catch." Naruto threw the sword over Zabuza's head to Hikari, who easily caught the sword.

"Girl…" Zabuza glared.

"Kakashi, how much do you think this sword would be worth?" Hikari casually asked.

"I don't know… It belongs to one of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, so…" Kakashi paused. "A hell of a lot."

"Well, that solves that dilemma," Naruto shrugged. Hikari unfurled a sealing scroll, and just as Zabuza flew towards her, she threw the sword to Naruto, who sealed it within a scroll. "Well, you can say goodbye to that sword…"

Zabuza growled loudly. "I was going to spare you if you handed that man over… Now you'll just have to face the wrath of the Demon of the Mist!"

Naruto stared at Zabuza and burst out laughing. "You're not a demon."

"And you would be?" Zabuza cracked his knuckles.

"As a matter of fact…" Naruto grinned, revealing impossibly long canines. "I'd like to think of myself as one."

Zabuza stared at Naruto for a moment, before his gaze slowly drifted to Kakashi. "If it isn't Sharingan Kakashi…"

"Zabuza," Kakashi inclined his head. "I think you might want to leave us be."

"I'm afraid I can't do that…" Zabuza grinned. "Your brats stole my sword."

"You threw it at us," Naruto countered.

"You're guarding my target."

"You have no eyebrows," Naruto grinned.

Zabuza narrowed his eyes decided to move. He disappeared and reappeared right behind Kakashi, planning to plunge a kunai into his back. Kakashi jumped just as soon as Zabuza thrust his kunai forward, and he threw a shuriken towards Zabuza. Zabuza was hit by the shuriken, and he disappeared in an explosion of water, only to reappear and hit Kakashi. This time, Kakashi was the one who burst into water, and a kunai suddenly flew at Zabuza, who dodged it. Nearly instantly, it became a battle of attrition, aided by kunai, shuriken, and fists. Finally, Kakashi and Zabuza stayed in one place, both of them panting for breath. "It seems that we're using too much chakra…" Kakashi pointed out.

"I suppose so…" Zabuza agreed.

"Take up formation around Tazuna!" Kakashi ordered Naruto and Hikari, who immediately complied. Not a second later, another duplicate of Zabuza rushed the two of them. Hikari began to fight said duplicate, while Naruto continued to guard Tazuna.

Hikari sent a ferocious roundhouse kick to Zabuza's head, which he narrowly blocked by ducking. A second later, Hikari jumped back and threw a kunai towards him, which he easily deflected with his hand. During the brief moment in which Zabuza's eyes were occupied, Hitomi stabbed him in the gut with a kunai. Her eyes widened when Zabuza didn't dissipate, or release any sort of liquid. Just as suddenly, Zabuza threw her back with a ferocious grin plastered on his face.

She continuously attacked the clones, raining it with various projectiles. Suddenly, she noticed a flicker of movement in the corner of her eye. She quickly moved her eyes to follow it, and she cursed. **"KAI!"** She called out as she clasped her hands together.

Suddenly, the world shifted into focus, and she saw that she was fighting Naruto, not Zabuza. To her dismay, he seemed rather badly wounded as well. She tried to open her mouth, but no words came out. Hikari looked down in shock to see an icicle penetrating her throat. Naruto gave Hikari a sad smile, and pulled the icicle out… before thrusting it back in. **(I just realized how dirty that sounds)**.

The entire world shattered in an explosion of color, as Hikari gasped for breath. Various emotions were fuelling her at the moment: betrayal, shock, heartbreak…

Hikari blinked through the tears which were accumulating in her eyes, to find Zabuza poised to strike her down with a sword he'd pulled out of nowhere. Acting on pure instinct, she quickly kicked as hard as she could in a certain _place_, causing Zabuza to fall down and start screaming like a little girl (with no eyebrows).

"So, you broke through that genjutsu," Zabuza managed to strain out; before turning into a puddle of water. She blinked in shock, finally realizing that there wasn't an icicle piercing her throat.

She looked behind her to see Kakashi imprisoned within a floating orb of water, and Naruto diligently protecting Tazuna, all the while sending out various clones to fight Zabuza. Hikari, sensing an opening in Zabuza's stance, quickly threw a kunai at his opening; allowing Naruto to pass his defences. Zabuza cursed as Kakashi fell out of the water prison.

"You got lucky," A sullen Zabuza proclaimed, as he disappeared. All three of them, sans Kakashi, looked around in shock, when Zabuza suddenly reappeared behind Hikari. He brought his sword up in a perfect arc, and Naruto cursed his inability to save her. Zabuza's sword began it's descent towards Hikari, and time seemed to slow down for the three Konoha shinobi. Kakashi was desperately trying to run towards her, while Naruto was frozen in shock. Hikari watched as the sword got closer and closer to her neck.

Suddenly, in an unexpected movement, Hikari took out a kunai faster than anybody could follow, and stabbed it straight into Zabuza's thigh; where his femoral artery was contained. Zabuza winced, but didn't stop his sword's momentum. Hikari quickly took the kunai out of his artery and stabbed it into his groin. The sword was an inch away from her neck at this point, and Hikari closed her eyes, willing herself to be out of his sword's reach. After a moment, Hikari opened her eyes in shock, to see that she'd managed to replace herself with one of Zabuza's own clones.

Zabuza cursed as his clone transformed into water and fell to the ground. He was about to throw the sword at Hikari, when he noticed his injuries. "BITCH!" Zabuza screamed, as he fell to the ground; clutching at his groin in an attempt to alleviate the pain. **(I imagine that's impossible)** Before he could move anymore, Zabuza was struck by two senbon and his body immediately went limp.

Naruto, Hikari and Kakashi looked at the new arrival in interest. It was a shinobi with a mask which had three blue, swirling lines on the forehead of it, and a red crescent near the cheek. The shinobi's black hair was long; easily shoulder length. "Thank you for your assistance," The shinobi bowed, as she grabbed Zabuza and disappeared with him. Naruto blinked and turned to Kakashi.

"What was that?"

"A hunter-nin," Kakashi explained. "They hunt down rogue shinobi and ensure that the secrets of those shinobi don't fall into enemy hands."

"Huh."

"Should we take this old man home?" Naruto asked; gesturing towards Tazuna.

Kakashi shrugged. "That's our job…" he muttered as he blinked furiously.

"Are you alright, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked.

"I'm just low on chakra…" He rubbed his temple.

"How about you, Hikari?" Naruto asked. She was even paler than usual, and her hands were shaking a little. Hikari seemed to be in deep thought. "Hikari?"

"I'm fine…" She quietly replied. Naruto frowned, knowing that this wasn't exactly the case. Naruto created 3 shadow clones to carry Kakashi, who was teetering all over the place, and slung Hikari over his shoulder. "Hey!" She protested.

"You don't seem fine," Naruto nonchalantly stated. Hikari glared at him while he walked to Tazuna's house, as if carrying her on his shoulder was no problem. After a while of walking, a small blush began to appear on Hikari's face. She couldn't help herself; it was just so… comfortable.

Unknown to Hikari, Naruto also had a blush on his face. To him, Hikari felt like she fit against his body perfectly. He suppressed a shudder as he continued onwards; following Tazuna to the house. Quite soon, they stopped in front of a small red house. Tazuna took out a key and led Naruto (and his clones, and Hikari, and Kakashi….) inside, showing him to a room.

"I hope you don't mind sharing a room with the girl? We only have one spare room, and the rest are full. Your sensei could probably fit in my room," Tazuna explained; a mischievous glint in his eyes.

Naruto shook his head. "I'm fine with it as long as she is."

Tazuna nodded and left the room to await his daughter and grandson.

"I don't mind…" Hikari mumbled into Naruto's shoulder. Naruto gently placed her on the ground and she tried to regain her balance. She threw a glare at Naruto, who flinched.

"Did I do something wrong…?" He asked, uncertainly.

"Nope," She replied.

Naruto frowned, when he suddenly remembered something. "What did you see in that genjutsu that Zabuza cast on you?"

This time, it was Hikari's turn to flinch. She regained her composure and coolly replied, "Nothing."

"It's not nothing!" Naruto argued angrily. "We've never hidden anything from each other, Hikari-chan. Why start now?"

"What difference does it make?" Hikari yelled. "It's not as if he made you kill me!" As soon as Hikari finished her sentence, her eyes widened.

"I…" Naruto was at a loss for words. "I'm sorry…" He mumbled.

"It's alright. I know you wouldn't do that," Hikari replied quietly.

"Still… I'm sorry you had to see that," Naruto said. "I've lost so much over the course of my life… I don't want to lose you…" As soon as the words left his mouth, Naruto blinked in confusion. Hikari began to blush, and she finally noticed her clothes.

"I have to change," She said. Naruto nodded as he left the room.

"If anybody asks, I've gone for a walk," Naruto told Tazuna before he left. Indeed, Naruto did go for a walk, stopping at the side of a tree. After an internal monologue **(a fox needs her sleep *shrug*)** Naruto punched the tree in frustration. After the punch, he felt even worse; most likely due to the bleeding knuckle was sporting. The tree seemed no worse for the wear, save for a small dent where Naruto's fist impacted.

"I'll get him…" Naruto muttered. "Even if he's dead, I'll make him regret casting that genjutsu on Hikari-chan…"

"_**He's stronger than you,"**__ Hitomi pointed out with a small yawn._

"_I'll just have to get stronger," Naruto replied._

"_**It's not that easy. Strength without discipline is useless."**_

"_Then I'll get discipline!" Naruto paused for a minute. "You can hurt me, stab me, break me… But the day you touch Hikari-chan…"_

"_**Aww, what about me?" **__Hitomi mock-pouted._

"_You're a near-omnipotent fox," Naruto pointed out. "Sealed in me," He added as an afterthought._

"_**Ah, life as a lazy fox…" **__Hitomi sighed contentedly. __**"Seriously, though. You have no chance against Zabuza as you are."**_

"_What can I do about it?!" Naruto asked exasperatedly._

"Hello?" Hikari poked Naruto in the forehead. Naruto blinked in surprise and was about to reach for a kunai when he recognized Hikari.

"I was just thinking," Naruto smiled. "It's not everyday you get to aid in a political war." He slumped against the tree and sighed. "I felt so helpless when I was fighting them…" He admitted sadly. "Sure, I was able to take out a clone, but it's only 1/10 of the original…"

Hikari frowned, "Is that all?"

"Yes…"

"Then train!" Hikari commanded. "If you have enough time to be depressed, train! If you have enough time to consider alternate scenarios, train! It's pointless to give up when you can just as easily improve yourself!"

Naruto stared at her for a moment, before breaking out into a grin. "Alright! Let's start training!"

Hikari backed away suddenly. "N-no… Weren't we talking about you?"

"If you have enough time to be depressed, train…" Naruto replied. "I don't know about you, but I want to get stronger… Not just for myself, but for those I love. After all, I _am_ going to be the future Hokage!" Naruto proclaimed, as he performed Gai's patented 'Nice Guy' pose.

Hikari stared at him. "Naruto…" Suddenly, her entire demeanour changed. "Let's train!"

The rest of the afternoon was passed by the two sparring. Hikari easily beat Naruto, but the sheer speed at which he could think on his feet amazed her. Finally, the two of them prepared for the 'final attack', something which often occurred in real fights. Naruto and Hikari ran towards each other and prepared their most powerful jutsu.

Kakashi watched from the window, and he proudly smiled. "I wouldn't mind teaching somebody who surpasses my sensei," He murmured to nobody in particular. Tazuna, who had been watching along with Kakashi, simply nodded in awe.

"They're quite something, aren't they?" Tazuna asked.

"Yeah… The two of them have gone through countless hardships. Most people would have given up by now. Instead, they draw strength from their troubles. It's actually…" Kakashi searched for a word in vain. "Well, it's amazing. Let's leave it at that."

Tazuna laughed for a moment. "Indeed… I hope those two don't lose sight of their path…"

"If they do, it could spell certain disaster for the world," Kakashi laughed. "Without a doubt, those two will be the greatest shinobi history has ever seen…"

Tazuna nodded, as a little boy was watching beside him. "Let's go, Inari. It's past your bedtime."

Inari stood on his tiptoes, trying to watch through the window. "O.K…" He replied, after staring in awe.

As they walked towards Inari's room, Tazuna smiled. _'Those two have been able to easily do something Tsunami and I couldn't… At this rate, Inari will break out of his shell.'_

Naruto landed back and began to gasp for breath. "That was intense," He finally said.

"It was," Hikari agreed. She was nearly as winded as Naruto, but in slightly better shape.

"Well, I think they're waiting for us…" Naruto said. He was about to finish, when he collapsed from fatigue.

Hikari giggled as she watched Naruto fall. This time, she threw him over her shoulder, and began to limp towards Tazuna's house.

To Be Continued.

* * *

**YOSH! She giggled o.o - am I the only one who thinks that word actually holds more emotion than 'laugh, chuckle, etc'? I personally think it's softer, warmer, and... well, lovelier. I'm not gay, nor am I girl FYI.**

**Uhh, next chapter... Should I have some training, or should I fight Zabuza, or what? I already have plans for how the fight with Zabuza turns out (kinda, sorta, maybe) and etc etc. All I'll say is that Inari won't say something completely and utterly retarded like 'You can't beat that newb who hides behind weak mercenaries!' since he's seen them train. Honestly, if I could draw, I'd have made this a manga. And then I'd get sued by Kishimoto. But yeah, I basically imagine epicly vivid scenes that I can't begin to describe. How 'bout you?**

**- Laterz :)  
**


	5. Epic Battle! Naruto's Nindo!

**Well... It's been a whole two days since I've updated, huh? If you couldn't tell, I'm a pretty unreliable guy ^_^ - that's just how I roll. Anyways, this chapter prob would've been released earlier if I hadn't realized how many epic Naruto fanfics there are (I'm going through all the good ones atm). Basically, I didn't start writing this until yesterday, when I had 1hr free time. Etc, etc. Then I started about 3 hours ago today... Somehow, it just took longer than expected.**

**Anyways, you get some humour, some blackmail material, and a little romance. Oh, don't forget that cliffhanger at the end.**

**(I have a question at the end; I write it there cuz it's directly tied w/ this chapter).**

**Enjoyz :)**

**--Darkfire: Yeah, I suppose... I'd just rather go with both stories rather than just one (I _think_ I'm replying to your latest review...  
**

* * *

Naruto groaned as he slowly got out of the bed. Every time he moved, a sharp crack would resound through the air, and he'd collapse back into bed again… Just to restart the process all over again. Finally, after countless strained muscles, Naruto managed to get up again. _"Thanks for the healing," Naruto sarcastically told a sleeping Hitomi._

_**"Mmm… Usagi-kun…" **__Hitomi murmured. Naruto sweatdropped and decided to break off the connection._

"Morning sunshine," Hikari cheerfully greeted Naruto. Naruto expressionlessly stared at her for a moment.

Suddenly, Naruto broke out into a grin. "Ready to train?" He asked. Hikari nervously backed away.

"I could've sworn you'd be out for the next two days…" Hikari murmured. Naruto grinned in response.

"I'm never out for half as long as you'd expect. It helps to have a near-omnipotent demon in my navel, you know."

"I'll bet," Hikari muttered. "You know that there's breakfast, right?"

Naruto's eyes widened. "Breakfast? Seriously?" Hikari shook her head sadly.

"Yes, there's breakfast. Now hurry up and eat!" She commanded. Naruto stood to his full height and mock-saluted her. After a moment of staring at each other, they both turned away simultaneously with small blushes. Naruto hurriedly ate his breakfast, while Hikari watched him sadly.

"You know, we should've left that village long ago…" Hikari sighed. "If they're willing to give _Sasuke_ a second chance…" She narrowed her eyes, adding extra malice to Sasuke's name.

"I'm going to stay in that village," Naruto replied after a long pause. "It's not as if I'm alone. I have Shikamaru, Shino, Kiba and even Kakashi-sensei."

"What about me?" Hikari pouted.

"It'd be kinda redundant to say your name…" Naruto rubbed the back of his head.

Hikari rolled her eyes and poked him in the forehead. "Hurry up and finish."

Naruto rubbed his forehead and sent a mock-glare at her. After the two of them broke out laughing, he quickly swallowed the rest of his cereal _whole_. Naruto put his bowl down on the table and summoned a shadow clone to watch Kakashi.

Imagine his surprise when he sees Kakashi at the area in which he and Hikari were about to train within. "Kakashi-sensei? Shouldn't you be in bed?" Naruto asked.

"I'm on my way there. I just thought I should get you two started on your training," Kakashi smiled. "First…" He took out a small book. "Let me tell you two a story." Naruto and Hikari looked at each other and shrugged. The two of them sat down as Kakashi opened a book and began reading.

"Over 15 years ago, I was ecstatic…" Kakashi started. "I'd just graduated from the academy, and I'd get to be a shinobi. I'd get to prove the worth of my clan, myself, and my power. Sounds familiar, huh? Anyways, I was assigned a sensei… Namikaze Minato, the Yondaime Hokage."

­_---Flashback---_

_Minato sighed as he looked at the three of them. "Alright, follow me."_

_Team 9, soon to be dubbed 'Team Minato' walked out to one of the training fields. The three of them were a peculiar bunch. A girl with dull brown hair and pink markings on her face; a boy with black hair and a carefree expression, and another boy; with soulless eyes and a mask covering the bottom half of his face. Minato suddenly stopped and threw a kunai at them. They immediately scattered._

_"You have to get this bell from me," Minato pointed towards a bell tied to his waist. "If you don't get it… You will die."_

_Kakashi stared at Minato with a shocked expression, before it became immensely determined. The black-haired boy beside him looked to be unsure of what to do; while the girl was also trying to decide whether to run or attack._

_Minato sighed when he saw them do nothing. "Fine. Have it your way." He immediately threw three kunai towards them at breakneck speed and barely missed them. As Kakashi saw the kunai pass him, he snapped back to attention._

_Kakashi ran towards Minato with his kunai drawn. As Kakashi was about to attack Minato's torso, he jumped and tossed the kunai behind him. Minato easily deflected the kunai with one of his own, and he turned back to the other two as Kakashi jumped out of sight. "He's made his decision. How about you?"_

_The girl, inspired by the bravery which Kakashi had showed, threw two kunai and four shuriken towards Minato, and disappeared into the trees. As the projectiles neared Minato, they began to glow, and they exploded. As the dust blew away, Minato was unharmed, and the lone boy was still standing in the same place. "And you?" Minato turned his gaze towards the boy._

_He stared at Minato again, disbelieving. Then his eyes narrowed. "I won't give up…" He muttered. The boy took out a kunai, but instead of attacking Kakashi with it, he held it in his hand. "I won't give up, no matter how bad the situation seems… That's my nindo! The nindo of Uchiha Obito!"_

_Minato smirked for a moment. "Those are some nice words…" He brought out a shuriken and kunai. "But… how will you back them up?"_

_Obito grinned. "I'll back them up the same way you back yours up, sensei. I'll fight 'till the end." With that said, he waited for Minato to make the first move. He shifted his grip on the kunai, struggling with his sweaty palms. Minato grinned as he disappeared in a yellow flash. Suddenly, Obito noticed that Minato had appeared behind him, and was holding a kunai to his neck._

_"If that's how it is…" Minato began to move the kunai against Obito's skin and Obito frowned in realization. Before anything else could happen, Kakashi and the girl flew out of a bush and attacked Minato furiously, forcing him to release Obito._

_"Rin, now!" Kakashi commanded. Rin nodded, and she threw several more kunai towards Minato, who blocked them with ease. His eyes widened when he noticed the explosive seals inscribed on them, and he had to force nearly all his chakra to his feet just to get away._

_Kakashi and Obito launched their own attacks at Minato, which were all easily deflected. Suddenly, they all found themselves surrounded by clones of Minato. The three of them glared unwaveringly towards the clones and took up a stance, each of them covering the back of the other._

_The Minato duplicates grinned and flew towards the genin at unmatched speeds. As the three prepared themselves to fight, the clones all disappeared in a puff of smoke. "You pass," Minato laughed._

_---Two Years Later---_

_"Well, if it isn't the son of the White Fang…" One of the shinobi grinned. "Boys, it looks like we'll have some good hostages!"_

_The partnering shinobi all grinned as they rushed Kakashi and Obito. The two of them wore sad smiles on their face as they stared at the face of death. In the blink of an eye, the Iwa shinobi jumped towards them and began to throw kunai. Kakashi heard Obito's cry of pain, and he completely disregarded his opponents as he turned to face Obito. That very mistake cost him one of his eyes as a shinobi managed to slash into an eyelid, causing blood to pour everywhere as viscous liquid began to fall out of Kakashi's eye. Kakashi screamed in pain and threw a three-pronged kunai into the air… before he fainted._

_"Kakashi…" Rin shook Kakashi awake. "Obito's gone."_

_Kakashi's eyes widened. "He… But…" Kakashi brought his hand up to touch the eye which had been irreparably injured earlier. Suddenly, he realized that he could see everything much clearer through that eye…_

_---End Flashback---_

"Obito gave his eye to me," Kakashi finished. "I'd give both my eyes just to see him again… Though if there was anything that taught me…" Kakashi looked at the two genin seriously. "Obito put me above himself. I know he could've asked Rin to heal him, but he got her to repair his eye instead. I'm not trying to live through you, but… "

Naruto stood up and silently patted Kakashi on the shoulder. "Hey, sensei… We get it. In truth, we've always put each other above ourselves…"

"Which is what we'll continue to do," Hikari confidently chimed in. Kakashi wiped a lone tear from his eye and gave them a smile which was visible even through his mask.

"Alright then…" Kakashi paused dramatically. "Who wants to learn a new jutsu?!"

Naruto grinned. "Me! Pick me!"

"No, me!" Hikari yelled. Kakashi laughed and ruffled their hair.

"Tell you what, I'll teach you something that's usually reserved for chunin…" Kakashi took out two small pieces of paper and handed one piece to Naruto, and another to Hikari. "Channel your chakra through that paper, and it'll allow us to determine your element so that we know what jutsu I should teach you."

Naruto stared intently at the piece of paper, and channelled some chakra through it. Immediately, it split into two pieces; one of which burnt, while the other piece crumpled up. Kakashi stared at Naruto intently.

"Interesting… You have three chakra natures. Fire, Lightning, and Wind. Fire is by far the most popular in Konoha, while Wind and Lightning are the least popular." Kakashi nodded.

Hikari sighed as she channelled her chakra through the paper. She'd already gone through this before. The paper suddenly split into two pieces, one of which became soaked, the other disintegrating. "Wind, Earth and Water," Hikari stated. Kakashi nodded for a moment.

"Well, that makes things easier. The two of you both have 3 different affinities, which each seem as strong as the next. In addition, your natures complement each other perfectly." Kakashi frowned for a moment. He suddenly fished a scroll out of his pocket and passed it to the two of them. "This scroll contains combination jutsu for this situation. It has jutsu for teams which have two or more opposing elements. It's said that those who can master the jutsu on this scroll will be able to defend each other perfectly; while easily killing off the enemy. There were only two other ninja who mastered the use of this scroll though…"

"Who were they?" Naruto asked.

"Uzumaki Kushina, and Namikaze Minato," Kakashi winced.

"Uzumaki…" Naruto repeated for a moment. "Is she still alive?"

Kakashi regretfully shook his head. "I'm afraid she's dead, sorry Naruto." Naruto just gave Kakashi a weak smile in response, as he began to intently pour over the wisdom which the scroll brought. Kakashi gave the two of them a nod as he headed back to Tazuna's house to get some rest.

Naruto frowned at the first technique. "Hey Hikari, you want to try out the first one?"

Hikari looked at the scroll for a moment, before shrugging. "I suppose."

Naruto and Hikari brought their hands up to form seals in tandem. As the two of them began to release their chakra, they felt a strange change occur to the very nature of said chakra. They continued to do so regardless, and both shouted out simultaneously, **"Shipon: Araton no Chinkonka! (Team Release: Storm's Requiem)"**

A small storm-cloud suddenly formed over the two of them, and Naruto began to lose concentration as he stared in awe. Suddenly, the small cloud began to rain on the two. "What the hell…?" Naruto muttered.

Hikari stared at the clouds in obvious anger. She'd worn casual clothes today, which caused her clothes to stick to her skin as a result of the rain. "So much for that…" She muttered. "I'm going in to change," Hikari told Naruto. She made the small mistake of looking at Naruto as she said the sentence, and her eyes subconsciously began to trail along Naruto's chest.

"Alright," Naruto replied. Luckily for both of them, he didn't look at Hikari. Hikari quickly ran into the house to change. Kakashi chuckled as he lay back in his bed. Naruto frowned as he went over the scroll again. It said that he was supposed to merge his 'Lightning chakra' (whatever that is) with Hikari's 'water chakra'. As Naruto read further into that single technique, he was shocked to see how complicated it was. Apparently, he had to master lightning to such an extent that he could create magnetic fields. What he found most interesting though, was some foreign writing on the scroll which said _"Don't be bound by common sense"_.

Naruto sighed as he rolled up the scroll and went back into the house. Apparently, with all the time he'd spent pouring over one technique; it was already lunch time! Naruto quickly ran up to the room he'd shared with Hikari in order to put his scroll away. After he went back down, he was surprised to see that Kakashi was out of bed again. "Kakashi-sensei, will you be alright?"

"I'll live," Kakashi replied. At that moment, Tsunami placed the food on the table, and they all began to eat.

"So Kakashi-sensei, have you ever managed to perform a Shipon?" Naruto asked. Hikari placed her fork down and looked at Kakashi in curiosity.

"Well, not really," Kakashi replied as he rubbed his head. "Only certain Jounin are assigned teams with other Jounin."

"What are the conditions for that?" Hikari asked. She briefly noted that a small kid with black hair was further pulling his hat over his head as they spoke.

"You have to either be really good team members… Or really bad Jounin."

"Well, seems like Sasuke will be on a team if he ever makes Jounin," Naruto joked.

"That's true," Kakashi laughed. Suddenly, he gained a more serious tone. "I think you should know this… Zabuza isn't dead."

Naruto stared gravely at Kakashi, while Hikari quietly listened as she ate. "What do you mean?"

"Most hunter-nin decapitate the corpse at the spot... Instead, this one disappeared with him," Kakashi explained. "It goes to reason that she probably put him in a near-death state with those senbon, and simply revived him afterwards."

"So we have to train more," Naruto sighed. "At least we'll learn some new techniques."

"Why do you bother…" The little boy at the table mumbled. Naruto slowly turned his gaze towards the kid. "It's not as if you stand a chance against Gato! He'll just kill you!"

"So would you rather we left you to die?" Naruto calmly asked.

"Inari, don't!" Tsunami hissed at her son.

"Why die for somebody you don't even know? Are you trying to make yourself out to be a hero?" Inari scowled at Naruto. "Heroes don't even exist!"

"Really, kid? That's a damn shame. I suppose if heroes don't exist, then villains don't either?" Naruto smirked. "A true hero is somebody who fights for what they believe in." Naruto decided to imitate a technique he often saw the Hokage use, and he started to release small amounts of chakra. "A hero is somebody who never gives up…" Naruto's words seemed to reverberate through the room, "A hero is somebody… who'll trudge through a swamp filled with poisonous snakes just to save your sorry little ass."

"Stop talking as if you understand what I'm going through!" Inari yelled. "I bet you live a comfy life; coming home to your mom and dad everyday!" Naruto began to scowl, and the glass he was holding on to was visibly cracking. "I doubt you've ever starved, or been beaten!"

That did it. Naruto's glass broke, and he lost control over the chakra which he had been leaking out. Interestingly enough, this caused all the metal to fly towards Naruto, temporarily distracting him as Inari stormed upstairs. Naruto blinked as he saw various knives, forks and spoons flying towards him. Just as they were about to hit him and Naruto stopped leaking chakra; the silverware dropped. "I'm going for a walk," Naruto proclaimed as he stood up; completely ignoring the fallen silverware.

The remaining people stared at Naruto's previous place in shock. "Did he just manage to manipulate electrical chakra…?" Kakashi asked.

Hikari nodded, completely dumbfounded. "That was quick…" Suddenly, her head snapped up. "I'm going to go after him," She quickly ran out the door. Kakashi sighed as he continued his meal. _'Thank god for chopsticks,'_ Kakashi mused.

By then, Naruto was resting against a tree, looking at the dark clouds threatening to break on the horizon. As he continued to watch, he became aware of another presence. Naruto lowered his gaze to see a black-haired girl staring at him. Naruto lazily stared back at her, waiting for her to make the first move. He noticed the recognition as her eyes settled around his forehead protector, and back down to his face. He watched as the girl quietly left with her basket, and he brought his gaze back up to the sky. **(HA! Take that! I removed a cliché part of plotlines!)**

After a while, Naruto noticed that Hikari was standing above him. Hikari deeply sighed. "Let's train."

Naruto nodded as he rushed Hikari.

_---One Week Later---_

Naruto jumped to his feet as he was awakened by a large crash. He immediately threw on his shinobi gear and travelled down the stairs in one silent leap. He narrowed his eyes at what he saw. Two bandits with heavily scarred faces were holding Tsunami hostage while Inari stared blankly at them. Naruto sighed as he jumped into view.

"Hey, it's a kid! What should we do with him?" The tallest bandit asked his shorter counterpart; who looked at Naruto appraisingly.

"Let's scare him a little," The bandit replied.

Naruto grinned as he held up his index finger. "One finger."

"Huh?" The bandits stared at him, dumbfounded.

"I'll beat you with one finger," Naruto finished. The bandits began to laugh, when they suddenly noticed that Naruto was no longer in plain sight. Suddenly, Naruto jumped into the view of the tallest bandit and jabbed his index finger into his eye. The bandit screamed in pain as Naruto used that same finger to poke him in the neck; rendering him unconscious. **(I wish that was actually possible…)**

The other bandit took out a dagger and recklessly charged Naruto, who easily dodged. Naruto unexpectedly grinned as he held his index finger in the air. "**Ninpo: Sennen no Kane Goroshi! (Ninja Art: Thousand Years of Metallic Death!)"**

As Naruto's finger remained in the air, large amounts of metal began to cover his finger, and he grinned in pure sadistic pleasure as the metal formed a point. Naruto brandished the point, scaring the conscious bandit out of his wits. As he tried to run, Naruto's eyes glinted and he appeared behind the bandit. **"KAI!" **Naruto yelled, as he thrust his finger into the man's rectal cavity, quite easily tearing some _very_ important organs (among them; his prostate gland).

The man collapsed onto the floor; completely unconscious due to extreme amounts of pain. Naruto looked at the metal in disgust as he went to wash the blood off of it. As soon as he washed it, the metal collapsed into the sink and laid there. "Well, I'm off to the bridge," Naruto nodded to a dumbfounded Inari, and a shocked Tsunami.

As Naruto neared the bridge, he frowned. He could see Zabuza and Kakashi fighting, yet he couldn't see Hikari… _"Where could she be…?"_

_**"Try the huge ice mirrors over yonder," **__Hitomi rolled her eyes._

Naruto nearly smacked himself in the head when he noticed the huge ice mirrors towering over a sign which read 'Yonder'. Naruto shook his head at the name; likely something Tazuna had chosen while drunk. Naruto jumped towards the ice mirrors, completely confident that Kakashi could handle himself. Naruto paused for a moment when he saw Tazuna unguarded. Naruto tried to decide whether to help Hikari or guard Tazuna. To his immense fury, he couldn't.

_**"Try forming this seal," **__Hitomi sent him a mental picture of a seal which would have likely looked like a fox if it were held close to a light source. __**"Imagine a clone which can take as many hits as you can."**_

Naruto followed her instructions, and watched in surprise as a clone materialized. Instead of popping into existence as shadow clones often did, this one started out as a crimson maelstrom which slowly settled into a definite shape. Naruto nodded to the clone; which went to guard Tazuna.

_"That was handy…"_Naruto mused as he jumped through the mirrors. Naruto frowned when he saw various senbon embedded into the ground. As he looked up, his eyes widened. Hikari had three senbon in her left arm, and there were two which had been embedded into her torso. Naruto gritted his teeth as he saw another two senbon fly towards her. Hikari managed to move out of the way despite the injuries she'd sustained.

Naruto watched impassively as the senbon landed three centimetres away from him. He slowly moved his gaze upwards to the attacker; who seemed to be flitting between mirrors. The attacker suddenly threw another senbon at Hikari, who seemed unable to dodge. Snapping himself out of his reverie, Naruto tackled Hikari right before the senbon landed. Naruto winced as he saw the senbon embedded in his legs. "Well, it looks like I have to save you," Naruto laughed.

"It sure does," Hikari replied. "Watch out for the senbon, they'll paralyze you regardless of where they hit."

Naruto shrugged. "I noticed," He carelessly plucked the senbon out of his leg; quickly regaining the feeling thanks to his superhuman healing. Naruto brought his gaze up to meet the attacker. "You see…" Naruto started to explain as he began to get up. "A while back, I promised that I'd protect the old man at all costs…" He took out a kunai. "I can tell that you won't back down… I know that I won't go back on my word… So I guess this has become a battle of willpower…"

"I will not lose," The attacker replied. Naruto instantly deduced that the attacker was a female, from both the voice, posture, and the obvious smell of estrogen. He looked back at Hikari and winked; just as the female threw several senbon at him. Naruto deflected all the senbon with his kunai, and he carelessly ran towards the girl.

"**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" **Naruto yelled as he formed a seal; causing hundreds of clones to pop into existence. All of the Naruto's attacked the girl and watched in shock as she suddenly vanished through the mirror and reappeared; vanquishing the senbon. "Interesting…" Naruto commented. He ran towards the attacker, dodging senbon as they were thrown at him. As Naruto was about to strike the mirror that the girl was hiding in, his eyes flitted to the side and he threw a kunai in that exact direction. The kunai struck the surprised girl, and she growled at him.

"I didn't want to have to use this…" She rolled her sleeves away from her hands as she began to form seals with one hand. **"****Sensatsu Suishō!"**

Immediately, the water on the ground began to solidify, and it flew towards Naruto at high speeds. Naruto frowned and jumped out of the way. The senbon harmlessly landed on the ground and turned back into water. Naruto's eyes widened as several senbon flew towards his arms, paralyzing them both. He cursed himself for not watching, and he turned back to the girl. "It won't happen again."

"It won't have to," She replied. She immediately threw several senbon at Hikari, and Naruto's eyes widened. Suddenly, the senbon moved towards him and embedded themselves in his legs. Naruto's knees buckled, and he found himself unable to move anything, save for his head. "It was a good fight while it lasted," She sighed.

Immediately, she brought her hands up again to form seals, and Naruto closed his eyes; waiting for the inevitable. After a moment, Naruto opened his eyes, to be shocked by what he saw. Hikari had somehow managed to get in the way of the senbon, and protect him with her body. "Why…?" Naruto weakly asked. He was glad to see that none of the senbon had reached her neck; yet there were many around her torso.

Hikari coughed and gave Naruto a smile. "I can't stand by… and watch you die..." She blinked. "I didn't even get to tell you how much I love you…"

Naruto's eyes widened exponentially as she fell towards the ground, and the enemy shinobi watched emotionlessly. Hikari's body hit the ground with a thud, snapping Naruto back to reality. He slowly stood up, completely ignoring the protest from his body. Naruto glared at Haku for a moment. "You can hurt me, stab me, break me…" His eyes began to turn orange, and his pupils became slits. **"But the day you touch Hikari-chan…" **Naruto released a feral growl and fell on all fours. **"Is the day… **_**You die!"**_

To Be Continued.

* * *

**Epic win cliffhanger, right? How about the 'confession'? Yes; I consider that a confession, and they'll take it as such. Opinions plox?**

**Also; did I make them too strong by giving them 3 elements each? It kinda-sorta ties in with my plans later on, plus I just realized that combining elements creates even stronger elements (Suiton + Doton = Mokuton; Suiton + Raiton = Araton). Epic, huh?**

**Also: Who loved the "Thousand Years of Metallic Death"? I sure did. *shudders* I'd hate to be hit with that.**

**Who wants me to hit Haku with that? o.o (I can have Naruto miss, incase you're perverted and Haku has a secret masochistic streak...)**

**Anyways, give me your opinions :). Laterz.**

**OH, and my opinion on NaruxSaku... Unless you can undo her bitchiness, it's a crappy pairing. No offense, but there's some things that are just wrong. Completely ignoring a teammate in favour of the more broody; stick-up-ass type is just retarded. Either change Sakura, Naruto, or Sasuke.**

**Last rant of teh day: Crappy grammar = phail. It hurts my eyes like hell, and my subconscious yells at me to GTFO.**

**(Did I sound like a bitch for the rants? Well, I sure feel like my blood pressure's too high from this damned invention called 'Summer School'.)**

**- Laterz :D**

**(PS: How the hell will I get Naruto and Hitomi together while keeping Hikari happy? Now _that's_ a challenge).  
**


	6. How to Save a Life

**Why the FUCK do some people call the Yondaime "Arashi Kazama"?**

**Oh, also, it's short cuz this is a 'beta-chapter'. In other words, at some point I started to wonder whether or not I screwed up (but I can't locate the actual screw up) so I place it up in hopes that you guys _can_.**

**I've spent about 2 hours more than I should on this, which really depresses me.**

* * *

Naruto snarled and recklessly charged Haku, who dodged with ease. She threw a dozen senbon at him, each meeting their mark successfully. What shocked Haku though, was the fact that Naruto _literally_ shook off the senbon, causing them to fly out of his skin. Naruto charged Haku again, and she threw two dozen senbon this time, only to watch in horror as he shook them off. At this point, Haku was immensely worried; cursing the fact that she only knew two bloodline jutsu. Haku swore out loud as Naruto flew towards her, picking up speed and nearly knocking Haku away from the mirrors. As it stood, Naruto had managed to break the mirror which Haku had previously hidden in.

Haku gulped as Naruto looked straight at her, and charged again. She swallowed her fear and formed a couple hand seals. Immediately, her hands began to glow a bright green and she struck Naruto straight in the chest with her palm.

Naruto flew back; seemingly unaffected by the attack. _**"Naruto-kun! Snap out of it!"**_ _Hitomi commanded as she watched helplessly. __**"Damn it… why did this have to happen on the first time?! If it were the second or third time he were releasing my power; at least I'd be able to do something!"**_

Naruto suddenly disappeared, and phased into existence in front of Haku; without leaving so much as a blur of light. He brought his hand back for a punch, and Haku braced herself for the inevitable. Amazingly, nothing happened, and she opened her eyes to find patches of red chakra holding Naruto's hand back.

Haku took advantage of the distraction and phased through some mirrors; throwing some senbon straight at his leg. Haku watched in satisfaction as Naruto crumpled to the ground in a spastic heap. Haku blinked and looked back at Hikari, who was out cold. Shrugging, Haku decided to go help her master; when she was suddenly tackled by an explosive force.

Kakashi heavily panted; his silver hair in disarray and his arms hanging limply by his sides. He took a look at Zabuza, and allowed himself a small smile. If Kakashi looked like he'd missed one night of sleep, Zabuza looked as if he'd been kept up for an entire week; forced to listen to some artists from the Mechanical Countries. Kakashi shivered; remembering the one time he'd been misfortunate enough to buy an album made by a girl called 'Mannah Hontana'. **(I don't like her music, it's too… teen-y for me.)**

"It looks like we have to end this," Kakashi sighed. Zabuza silently nodded. The two of them brought their hands up to perform seals. As soon as Kakashi had finished his seals, he clasped his left hand onto his right forearm, while his right hand began to sizzle. **(I could **_**so**_** make a masturbation joke atm…)** Zabuza on the other hand, was holding his arm in front of him; reinforcing it with water chakra.

As Kakashi's technique began to form, his hand became a brilliant shade of blue, and it sounded just like the chirping of birds. **"Chidori!"** Kakashi shouted as he ran towards Zabuza and stretched his arm out. At that exact moment, Haku flew past and Kakashi impaled Haku with the attack meant for Zabuza.

Kakashi blinked as Naruto ran on all fours towards Haku, completely ignoring the fact that she'd just been impaled. As he saw Zabuza move into his path 'by accident', Naruto used a red-chakra propelled foot; using Zabuza as a springboard. Zabuza screamed in pain as his beautiful face was marred, and Kakashi was left staring at the space in which Zabuza had occupied before he thrust his hand out.

"What… the hell?" Kakashi asked; before he fainted from chakra exhaustion.

Meanwhile, the possessed Naruto was beating the shit out of an already-fatally-wounded Haku. Naruto blinked for a moment, nearly coming to his senses, before he punched Haku once more… only for her to explode into multitudes of crystal. _**"**_**This**_** is why I tell him to snap out of it. But does he listen? Noo, he's just too obsessed with saving the girl he loves," **__Hitomi rolled her eyes before sighing. __**"Lucky…"**__ She muttered._

The real Haku lay 15 feet away, just as motionless as the previous one. Save for one simple fact: she was already dead. Naruto – despite his temporary insanity – was easily able to see that she was dead, and that it was pointless for him to take it out on her. So instead, he turned around and looked at the Demon of the Mist. Before Naruto could move, he heard Hikari groaning in pain. In most cases, he simply would have ignored it in his bestial state; yet… He found himself entranced, and the demonic chakra started to withdraw.

Only to increase in intensity when he was reminded of the pain inflicted on her. Naruto whirled his head around and rested his gaze on the incapacitated figure of Zabuza. Before anybody knew what he was doing, Naruto had already run towards Zabuza and thrust his hand through Zabuza's chest. Suddenly, small ears began to grow out of the top of his head, and he quickly grew maroon fur similar to that of Hitomi. He began to grow a furry tail which held great amounts of chakra, and he snarled as he looked for more victims.

Hikari groaned once more as she got up, and finally focussed her eyes. She saw Naruto running towards Zabuza. She saw him piercing Zabuza's chest with his claws… Then she saw him growing fox ears, fur, and a tail. Saying she was confused would be an understatement. She was _at the very least_, thoroughly perplexed. He briefly turned his head towards her, and she gasped lightly at the emotion contained within his eyes. _Bloodlust_…

As soon as she saw him move towards Kakashi, Hikari moved at speeds previously thought to be unachievable; stopping right in front of Kakashi. As she watched his demonic chakra move; she was briefly reminded of the Sharingan, which was… said to have the power to control the Bijū.

Realization dawned upon Hikari as she quickly activated her Mangekyou Sharingan. Acting purely on instinct, she summoned up a seemingly forgotten power of the Mangekyou Sharingan, and she began to lose her sense of balance, and eventually collapse.

_Drip… Drip…_

_Hikari looked around for a moment; finally realizing where she was. "So, his mindscape's a sewer… Must do _wonders_ for his self confidence," She sarcastically remarked. Her only answer was the continuous dripping of water from the pipes. Hikari sighed as she began to walk forward._

_As Hikari continued to walk, she noticed a large door emitting great amounts of light. "Hmm… Should I go towards the light?" She considered this for a brief moment, before walking through the door, and into Hitomi's residence._

_Hitomi raised her head to look at Hikari for a moment. __**"He's in trouble, you know."**_

_"I know," Hikari replied. "What can I do?"_

_**"Under most circumstances? Nothing…" **__Hitomi paused for a moment. __**"Though there **_**is**_** one thing you could do…"**_

_"Which is?"_

_**"Simply put, you'd have to merge with him," **__Hitomi replied. When she saw the look she was getting from Hikari, she quickly continued. __**"Not in that way. A merging of souls." **__She stared at Hikari and rolled her eyes when the furious, perverted, and semi-contemplative look didn't disappear. __**"There's two ways to do this; both should end with the same results. You can either merge your soul with mine; which will remove the demonic pressure from him, or you can merge your soul with his. They'll both give you my powers and three-way telepathy."**_

_Hikari frowned for a moment. "Isn't that just too convenient?"_

_**"Well, yes. The two of you will become Hanyou (Half-demons), and you'll often be targeted by full demons… Some of which are nearly as powerful as me. Thanks to the 'purist demons', I'll be teaching the two of you an Onipon Jutsu; just so you can stay alive," **__Hitomi stated. Hikari was long aware of her unwillingness to teach Naruto; saying that she wanted him to gain power without her help._

_"I know there's a catch…" Hikari muttered._

_**"Probably," **__Hitomi gave an unsettling grin. __**"So, whose soul do you want to merge with?"**_

_Hikari paused for a moment, before deciding. "Yours. I wouldn't feel right if I merged my soul with his…" She began to poke her index fingers together and she looked back up and Hitomi with determination etched on her features._

_**"It'll hurt like a bitch," **__Hitomi said. Hikari simply nodded and waited, as small traces of red essence began to leak out of the seal, and into Hikari. For a moment, Hikari felt greatly at peace with the world. Naturally, the time when she felt the most peace was the time when she began to feel the most pain as well._

_As the crimson essence began to surround her; she felt as if she were burning in the most intense flame ever conjured. Her entire being ached in impossible pain, and she nearly wished she'd died instead. Nearly._

_Suddenly, the pain stopped just as quickly as it had started. Hikari blinked as she saw Hitomi's gleeful grin. __**"Ha! Now I can own those damn demon-hunters twice as bad!"**_

_Hikari sweatdropped as she began to come to in the real world._

Naruto suddenly collapsed, just as soon as Gato's army came into view. Through sheer force of willpower, Naruto managed to stay conscious.

Naruto watched as Gato and his army marched towards the battle, and stopped. Gato observed the bridge with sadistic satisfaction, and commanded his army of bandits and mercenaries. "Kill them all!" He commanded. Suddenly, his gaze settled on Hikari, and he gave a lecherous grin. "Do what you want with the girl."

With a cheer, the bandits and mercenaries marched forwards. Naruto struggled to move a limb, but it was impossible. He couldn't even move his tail! Naruto paused in mid-thought for a moment. _"SINCE WHEN HAVE I HAD A TAIL?!"_

_**"Since you went berserk and killed Zabuza and Haku," **__Hitomi replied._

Naruto felt fear and fury build up in him as the men marched towards Hikari. Each footstep sounded like hell to him. At one point, he could swear that he'd _seen_ the gates of hell! Finally, the bandits came to a stop in front of Hikari, each of them with lecherous grins on their faces.

Naruto did his best to move, but he was completely tapped out. Lying a few meters away, Kakashi was trying the same – with no better results. All seemed lost to them. _"A little help…?"_

_**"I guess…" **__Hitomi sighed._

Almost immediately, an immense shockwave shook the entire area; causing many of the bandits to pause in fear. Naruto slowly got up and looked at the bandits with uncontained fury. They began to shake in their boots as murderous intent washed over them.

For the most part, Gato only seemed angry. "He's just a little kid who likes wearing fake fox ears!" Gato cried. "Just kill him!"

Naruto grinned at hearing Gato's words. He brought a single finger up, and disappeared. A second later, Gato cried out in pain from the chest wound he'd just received. Naruto grinned and began taking on all the bandits.

A couple hours later, Naruto grinned gleefully at the sight of their blood. Almost immediately; Hitomi retracted her demonic chakra and placed an illusion upon him; causing him to collapse. Naruto took that moment to look at Hikari, and he was shocked when he noticed that she also had a tail and fox-like ears on top of her head.

To Be Continued.

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**Something about it feels wrong, but I can't place it, so I can't fix it. I also can't continue cuz if something feels wrong; I refuse to continue. I'm anal-retentive like that :).**

**Oh, btw... Incase anybody cares: I hate Yaoi.**

**- Laterz; I'll either rewrite this chapter or create a new one which has the same premise, but essentially better writing.**

**-- Did I make them too powerful?  
**


	7. Konohamaru Corps

**Yeah, I know. It's shorter than it should be. I was thinking of waiting the extra day, but meh.**

**Anyways, since nobody (Save I'MNOTCRAZY) could find any errors, I let it be. I was thinking of starting this chapter out w/ Orochimaru staring at Naruto, fighting, etc, etc, new Onipon jutsu, etc,etc. Oh well.**

**Wasted 400 characters worth of time on that =/.**

**Anyways, after some pondering... I've realized that my writing isn't half as good as I think it is. Somehow, I get the feeling it's crap. *Shrug* maybe I'm just going all inferiority-complex, but meh. IDC much; it's _you_ guys who have to deal with the logic that makes no sense.  
**

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Naruto groaned in pain as he slowly lifted himself off of the bridge. With each movement, previously unnoticed bones cracked. "Troublesome…" Naruto muttered under his breath. He looked up to see that nearly all of the citizens had gathered at the bridge, and were watching Naruto in awe. He looked around and finally noticed all the blood that he was covered with, and the corpses of the bandits who'd they attacked. Most prominently displayed was the corpse of Gato; who'd received hell-shattering torture. _"I was probably merciful in killing him," Naruto mused._

"Good job, gaki," Tazuna patted Naruto on the back with a warm smile. His cheeks were thoroughly flushed, and he smelled of alcohol.

Naruto suspiciously eyed Tazuna's bottle of sake. "How drunk are you?"

Tazuna grinned lewdly, "Your mammaaa…. Soooo…" He began to sway and suddenly fell on the ground. Naruto's eyes widened when Tazuna's shorts slipped off and inadvertently mooned him.

Naruto immediately emptied the contents of his stomach onto the ground; some of it splattering onto Tazuna's revealed posterior. **(This is hilarious, yet I'm quite sure it's somewhat possible…)**

The villagers all looked away in disgust as Naruto finished emptying his stomach. Unbeknownst to him, Hitomi was laughing her kitsune ass off inside the seal. _**"Priceless shit!" **__She gasped for breath. __**"This kid has the best gaming luck; yet the worst life luck ever!" **__She mused. __**"Wouldn't have it any other way…" **__She muttered._ Through sheer ignorance, Naruto managed not to hear her immensely loud laughing in his head.

"God… I feel worse than that time Gai and Lee challenged me to a drinking contest…" Kakashi groaned. His hair was in full disarray and he had large bags under his eyes.

"How'd that turn out?" Hikari asked, as she got up with a wince. They both saw Tazuna's puke-covered butt and turned away to empty their own stomachs. "That… is sick…"

"So, what's new?" Naruto asked everybody in his usual laid-back manner. The civilians all sweatdropped and Tazuna managed to wake up. To everyone's immense humour, Tazuna pulled up his pants without even noticing what was present on his *cough* ass *cough*.

After the laughter died down, Inari grinned. "That was awesome, Naruto!"

"Of course! What more could you expect from the future Hokage?" Naruto grinned back at Inari and brought his hand up to give everybody a thumbs-up.

_**"Well, I think it's time to teach you a new technique, Naruto…" **__Hitomi started._

_"Which is?"_

_**"Bijū no Gekijou (Bijū's Fury/Passion/Strong Emotion)"**_

_---One Week Later---_

Team 7 grinned at the crowd of villagers who'd gathered in order to see them off. "See you later gaki," Tazuna patted Naruto on the back. He then turned to Hikari and grinned. "Take care of the gaki."

"I'll do my best," Hikari bowed to Tazuna; who bowed back.

"Thank you for everything," Tazuna said to Kakashi. Kakashi simply nodded his head in response.

"I'll see you again, Inari. You better prove to me that heroes do exist!" Naruto proclaimed to Inari, who grinned back.

"I'll do way more! Just you wait!" Inari cried out, as small tears began to well in his eyes. Naruto turned around quickly before his tears could show, and they soon began to make their way through Konoha.

"Well…" Kakashi pulled out a scroll he'd taken from Zabuza's corpse. "I think you two have outdone yourselves." He showed the scroll to the two of them.

"A request for assistance in the invasion of Konoha…?" Naruto narrowed his eyes.

"Yup. You, Naruto… Have managed to complete some high level missions... 4 B-Ranked missions, 1 A-Ranked mission…" He paused for dramatic effect. "With this… That should add 1 S-Ranked mission onto it."

"S-Ranked?!" Naruto cried out.

"Isn't that reserved solely for retrieval of important documents, and large combat missions in which the odds are stacked against you?" Hikari asked.

"Well, there's that… Except, we _did _assist in a civil war, and we managed to retrieve an important scroll which will help us immensely. All in all, don't you think that might rank it up a little?"

"I suppose," Hikari conceded. "Still, why an S-Ranked? I'm sure an A-Ranked mission is enough."

"Oh, well… Let's just say that it'll really help in the Chunin exams. They look at your mission ranks. In the case of higher ranked missions, they'll convert them. That system allows prestigious genin teams with a small number of missions under their belt to take the test," Kakashi explained. "Basically, an S-Ranked mission is worth 100 D-Ranked missions, an A-Ranked mission is worth 75 D-Ranked missions, and so on."

"Huh, sounds like we're gonna kick ass!" Naruto grinned.

"Yeah. That, and the Chunin exams run on a special points system. You get a certain amount of points from each portion of the test – which is actually a secret – and those points determine whether you succeed or not," Kakashi grinned. "All in all, I'll be disappointed if you don't at least make Chunin."

"At least?" Hikari asked.

"Well, you can also make and break certain records, gain renown for your team, stuff like that."

"Sounds like fun," Naruto cracked his knuckles in anticipation.

"Oh, it is…" Kakashi grinned darkly; knowing the names of the exam directors.

_---Time skip; to Konoha's Hokage Tower---_

Sarutobi took a long drag from his pipe and looked up at the team. "You've outdone yourselves this time…"

"I'm surprised," Iruka added in approval.

"All in all… Considering the difficulty _and_ results, I'll list this as an S-Ranked mission," Sarutobi grinned when he saw Naruto's expression.

"Alright! Chunin exams, here we come!" Naruto whooped. Hikari just shook her head in shame; hiding the small blush she had.

_**"Aww, somebody's in love," **__Hitomi grinned mentally at Hikari. _Hikari rolled her eyes and followed the three of them out of the room; realizing she'd tuned out the entire time.

Sarutobi looked at the scroll again, and sighed. "This will be bad…" He waved his hand to summon one of his ANBU, "Tell Jiraiya that we need him."

"Hai!" The ANBU acknowledged, and he quickly rushed out of the office to contact Jiraiya.

The three members of Team 7 quickly broke off. Hikari was going to train, Naruto was going for a walk, and Kakashi was going… to places better left unmentioned.

Naruto was walking when he saw a creepy kid with makeup all over his face holding a little boy by his neck. Naruto quickly ran towards the scene and screamed at the guy, "What the hell are you doing?!"

"He bumped into me," The kid replied.

"Stop it, Kankuro. We're not supposed to draw attention to ourselves!" His blonde-haired companion hissed.

Naruto slowly bent down to pick up two rocks into his hand. In a split second, Naruto had thrown two of the rocks; one of them into the trees and another one straight at Kankuro. Immediately, as the rock went flying, Naruto took out a kunai and held it against the package on his back. At the same time, Naruto watched in morbid interest as the rock flew by Sasuke and was blocked by a shield of sand.

"Kankuro, leave him." The boy who had been shielded by sand commanded. Naruto looked at him for a moment, noting his small amount of makeup and the inscription of the kanji 'love' on his forehead. Naruto also noted the gourd around his back, and how he seemed to eternally exude killing intent.

"B-but G-gaara…" Kankuro stuttered.

"Leave him," Naruto commanded. Kankuro turned to sneer at him, but his eyes widened in shock when he saw Naruto. Naruto had channelled a small amount of Hitomi's chakra to his eyes in order to frighten the genin – a task at which he perfectly succeeded.

"A-alright," Kankuro quickly dropped the boy, and Naruto's eyes returned to normal. Gaara jumped down from his branch, just as Sasuke did.

"I'd like to know your name," Gaara stated. Hikari jumped down from a branch behind Naruto and stood behind him. At the same time; the boy who'd been held by the collar of his clothing quickly dashed behind Naruto.

"Uzumaki Naruto and Uzumaki Hikari. You?" Naruto replied; pointing at himself and Hikari respectively.

"Sabaku no Gaara," Gaara replied. "I look forward to seeing you in the Chunin exams, Uzumaki-san," Gaara inclined his head and walked away with Kankuro and his other team-mate.

"Wow! That was so cool!" The kid gushed. "Thanks a lot, boss!"

"Boss?" Naruto asked, as he raised an eyebrow.

"Well, yeah. You're going to teach me after all!" The boy proclaimed.

"As if the dobe could teach anyone," Sasuke remarked with a sneer. Naruto looked at Sasuke with an eerily out of place smile.

"You wanna experience a new technique I created, Sasuke? Even Kakashi's afraid of it…" Naruto continued to grin in that eerily creepy matter. When Sasuke was silent, Naruto snorted. "Good choice, dickless." **(Had to emulate Sai. He's epic win w/ the "no dick" jokes)**

Sasuke's eye began to violently twitch, and he used all of his willpower to turn around and leave, after muttering a few words, "Stupid... idiotic... inferior... dobe..." Naruto grinned as he watched Sasuke's retreating figure.

"So, who are you anyways?" Naruto asked.

"I'm Sarutobi Konohamaru!" He proudly proclaimed

"I'm Udon!" A snot-nosed boy who was standing beside a girl proclaimed.

"and I'm Moegi!" The girl stated. All three of them made a pose, and Naruto sweatdropped.

"Together… we make the Konohamaru corps!" The three of them yelled. Naruto's eye twitched violently and he looked around for Hikari… who'd disappeared as soon as she'd seen the pose. Naruto sighed, and quickly turned his back on them; hoping that they'd leave him alone. Sadly, he had no luck in that area.

"Hey boss, can you show us how you beat him?" Konohamaru begged, as he followed Naruto. Naruto was about to ignore him, when he looked back at Konohamaru.

His face held determination. Determination that greatly reminded Naruto of his days as a kid; when none of the teachers would teach him anything. He was lucky enough to have Hikari to fall back on, but she was often busy training and improving. Naruto sighed, and turned to face the Konohamaru corps. "Alright, tell you what. I'll teach you one technique and if you can master it, I'll think about helping you out more."

"Awesome!" The three of them quickly proclaimed. Naruto sighed and led the three of them to training ground 7. He stopped in front of a log, and tossed them one kunai each.

"You see those kunai?" He paused when the three of them nodded, and sported a very sadistic grin. "You have to break through the log with your kunai. _In the exact center_."

He nearly laughed when he saw their faces fall. "That's impossible!" Udon cried out as he sniffed some of his snot back into his nose. 

"Really?" Naruto grinned. He pointed to the log, and as they watched; a cut suddenly appeared into it. "It's not impossible, just hard."

"Alright! If I can't do this, I'll never be Hokage!" Konohamaru proclaimed, as he picked the kunai off of the ground and threw it with all the force he could muster, only to fall down onto his bum.

"Why do you want to be Hokage…?" Naruto asked, as he leaned against one of the training posts. He watched Konohamaru carefully as he answered.

"I'm tired of living in my grandfather's shadow! I want to make a name for myself and have this village see me as Konohamaru!" Konohamaru proclaimed. Naruto lightly smiled.

"That's not the right reason to become Hokage. _I_ want to become Hokage so that I can protect this village. The title of Hokage is _not_ just a commodity. It is the pride of this village!" Naruto grinned, as he watched Konohamaru absentmindedly stroke his chin while thinking.

After that, Konohamaru and his friends stayed surprisingly silent, and Naruto decided to lightly spar with his own clones in order to pass the time. When he was finally starting to get tired; just as the sun was setting, Naruto noticed that Konohamaru finally made an indent in the strong wood.

"Well, looks like you can do it after all, congratulations Konohamaru!" Naruto ruffled Konohamaru's hair.

"Of course! I _am_ going to be the next Hokage!" Konohamaru bragged.

"Hey! That's my position!" Naruto argued. He and Konohamaru began to have a staring contest.

"Fine then, I guess we're rivals from now on!" Konohamaru proclaimed. "I'll beat you, Naruto-niichan!"

Naruto grinned, "Good luck with that!"

The Konohamaru corps made their exit, and Naruto slumped against the training post with a small smile.

"They take a lot out of you, huh?" Kakashi asked, as he jumped down from a tree.

"Yeah… I wonder if this is how Iruka-sensei felt after he helped me out," Naruto laughed.

"Well, at the very least; you're one step closer to proving the villagers wrong," Kakashi gave Naruto an eye-smile. "After all, would a demon help little kids out?"

"Well, Kakashi…" Naruto patted Kakashi on the shoulder as he got up. "If there's one thing I know… It's that humans have altered perceptions of right and wrong… I actually wonder whether or not there's a 'true right' or a 'true wrong'," Naruto grinned.

"That's beyond mortal comprehension," Kakashi sighed. "See you later, Naruto."

"Yup," Naruto waved to Kakashi and he began to jog towards his apartment. Naruto sighed when he finally reached the apartment. He and Hikari were alone.

_---Flashback---_

_Hikari coughed and gave Naruto a smile. "I can't stand by… and watch you die..." She blinked. "I didn't even get to tell you how much I love you…"_

_---End Flashback---_

"Hey…" Naruto waved to Hikari, who was eating some eggs she'd managed to buy under a henge.

"Hey…" Hikari sighed, both of them obviously feeling the same amount of tension. She thoughtfully munched on her food, and Naruto waited patiently for her to finish. As soon as she finished, she washed it out at the sink, and turned to him. "I meant what I said… back at the bridge…" She finally murmured, after a brief pause.

Naruto managed to crack a smile. "Good to know."

The two of them stared for a moment, and Hikari eventually leaned in to kiss Naruto.

_**"Ah… Young love…" **__Hitomi sighed wistfully._

To Be Continued.

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_**Edit (9/18/09) - I changed the task Naruto gave the Konohamaru corps. They had to slice the trunk with a pebble earlier. Now, they had to break through it. How did Konohamaru do it? He's badass enough to unconsciously channel chakra through his arm and do a once-in-a-lifetime-throw.I also made him call Naruto "Naruto-nii-chan". If you see him calling Naruto "boss", let me know.

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**_

**Was it rushed? Prob. I was never one for romance, so it's more your loss than mine. (Nah, it's actually more my loss.**

**So... point system for Chunin exam. Why'd I make it an S-Ranked mission? Cuz I wanna write the look on the faces of the Rookie 9 + Others when Kabuto brings out his playing cards.**

**(Did anybody like the Sai-joke)?**

**-Laterz**


	8. Awakening

**6,142 words w/o an A/N. Pretty epic, huh? Yeah. Anyways, this is called 'Awakening' for a reason. Basically, you'll find out part of the reason at the end.**

**Anyways... What's new? I've pretty much started writing my R+V fic again, but I'm only doing 2k/chapter for that one cuz R+V is exponentially harder to write more than 5k for (in my opinion)**

**Enjoy?

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**_Darkfire: 100% more asshole; 100% more fun. Still haven't gotten around to reading that message (lmfao). It'll be done by Saturday, don't worry. Saturday's the day I get summer school out of my system (CUZ ITS OVER ON FRIDAY! WEWT!)_**  
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Naruto whistled happily as he and Hikari walked towards the bridge at which Team 7 usually met. Meanwhile, Kakashi; who was walking towards the bridge from the other side; noted Naruto's immense grin and Hikari's small blush. "Had fun last night, Naruto, Hikari?" Kakashi asked as he let out a small perverted giggle. Naruto responded by increasing the size of his grin – if possible – while Hikari began to blush even more.

"I'm pretty sure that's got nothing to do with the Chunin exams, Sensei," Naruto replied.

"Can't blame an old man for being curious," Kakashi sighed.

"Or perverted…" Naruto muttered. "Besides, I don't kiss and tell."

Kakashi nearly fell over when he heard Naruto say that. "Anyways…" Kakashi sighed as he changed the subject. "The first portion of the test will start tomorrow. Naturally, I can't actually tell you what that portion is; only that you must go to the exam of your own free will. Only come if you feel you're absolutely ready," Kakashi handed the two of them a sheet of paper each. _'Not like you're going to back out now…'_

"Awesome! Thanks, Sensei!" Naruto called out as he waved. Hikari sighed and waved to Kakashi as she crossed the bridge.

"Well, time to do what I do best…" Kakashi looked around stealthily and put an ANBU mask over his face. He stealthily made his way to the hot-springs and began to giggle perversely.

"Anko-nee, tell me!" Naruto whined. For the past five minutes he'd been trying to weasel some information out of Anko regarding the Chunin exams.

"Listen, gaki. All I can tell you is that Ibiki's going to head the first portion of the exams," Anko sighed.

"Hmm… You mean that scary guy who saved me from an assassination attempt when I was a kid?" Naruto pondered. Naturally, there were many scary guys who'd saved Naruto from assassination attempts – not that he'd admit it. "Oh, I have a suggestion for your part of the test."

"Which is?" Anko asked, as she put her stick of dango down. She'd learned a long time ago that Naruto's advice was immensely helpful to at least _one_ of the involved parties.

"Well, first of all… Use _tons_ of explosions on your entrance," Naruto grinned sadistically. "Second of all… on that waiver which participants have to sign, add a clause which says we won't be responsible for any actions or words committed/spoken by them; provided they've made it to the 2nd round through lawful means. Except…" Naruto paused thoughtfully. "It should also ensure that team mates shouldn't be harmed by their own team mates…"

"Hmm…" Anko munched on a dango thoughtfully. "You've got an ulterior motive there, but I doubt you'll tell me?"

"Nope," Naruto grinned. "Let's just say… you'll either have a lack of applicants, or an influx…"

Anko rolled her eyes, "Alright gaki. I'll see what I can do."

"Awesome!" Naruto grinned and nearly began to laugh maniacally. He then discreetly looked at Anko, and walked away with a small wave. "Oh…" He paused on his way out. "Make sure you get Jiji and the council to sign it."

Anko watched his retreating figure curiously. _'Why would he want something like that in there…? Unless…'_ Suddenly, a huge grin wormed its way onto Anko's face. _'Oh, this'll be fun…'_

Naruto slowly walked towards training area 7, when he noticed something. "Oh, whoops… My Velcro-strap went loose…" He murmured, as he bent over. Just as Naruto moved his head down, a kunai whizzed past his head and embedded itself onto the tree which Naruto had been standing in front of. Naruto casually reattached the Velcro on his sandals, and he looked behind his back to see Sasuke standing there.

"Fight me," Sasuke commanded. Naruto simply shook his head in disgust and walked away. "Dobe, I told you to fight me."

"I don't give a crap," Naruto replied. "I wouldn't want to break our precious Uchiha before the Chunin exams, after all. If you want to fight me, get in line!" Naruto pointed towards a post which said 'Fight Naruto' on it. Interestingly enough, there were small flags embedded in the ground by the post; holding various names. Among those names were 'Sabaku no Gaara', 'Sarutobi Konohamaru', and 'Inuzuka Kiba'.

Sasuke growled and formed hand seals at a speed which would have seemed quick to any untrained academy student. To Naruto, it just looked like a pitiful attempt at fire jutsu. Naruto turned around slowly, just as Sasuke finished his seals and brought his hands up to a mouth and formed a circle with them. "Katon: Gōkakyu no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique)"

Naruto stood his ground and grinned as the fireball engulfed him completely. Just as the fireball was about to hit him, Naruto did something unexpected: he channelled his lightning chakra into a shield; causing the fire to swirl around him in a fiery blue tornado. Naruto grinned as he brought his hands down towards the unsuspecting Sasuke, and yelled out, "Raiton: Gōkakyu Tentou no Jutsu! (Lightning Release: Great Fireball Counter Technique)" _"Thanks, Kami. Couldn't have done it without you. Oh, and while I'm thanking people, I'd like to give props to the Yondaime, Sandaime, and Kyuubi."_

Sasuke's eyes widened as a blue whirlwind of flame rushed towards him. A second before the fire actually hit him, it suddenly transformed into a flock of crows which began to obscure his vision. "Genjutsu…" Sasuke muttered.

"Of course," Naruto grinned. "Do you _really_ think I'd use a strong attack on you? Oh, and I meant what I said. I'll defeat you in the Chunin exams. No sooner, no later."

Sasuke was about to send another attack, when Kakashi appeared in a whirlwind of leaves. "I'd like it if you _didn't_ attack my student," Kakashi glared at Sasuke.

"If I attacked the dobe, he'd be dead," Sasuke sneered as he walked away. Naruto rolled his eyes and began to walk towards the training area again.

"That was an interesting idea for a technique," Kakashi mused as he fell into step beside Naruto. "The funny thing is… it might actually work."

"Well, I don't do things half-assed…" Naruto replied. "Much…"

"I didn't know you could do genjutsu though…" Kakashi mused.

"It wasn't a genjutsu," Naruto replied. "It was an illusion."

Kakashi was about to reply, but he chose to pause in thought for a moment. "Semantics, huh? I suppose an illusion _is_ different from a genjutsu…"

"Yeah," Naruto replied. "Anyways, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Good luck," Kakashi replied. He then disappeared in another whirlwind of leaves; leaving Naruto alone with his thoughts.

_'I wonder where the leaves from the Shunshin come from…' _Naruto mused.

After a moment, Naruto became aware that he was being followed. Naruto looked behind him, to see a _square_ rock with three pairs of eyeholes. Naruto sighed, and reprimanded Konohamaru. "Konohamaru, first of all… Rocks aren't square, they don't have eyeholes, and they don't have very _much_ chakra either."

Suddenly, the rock flew up in an explosion of smoke; revealing the coughing trio of Konohamaru, Moegi, and Udon. "Too much gunpowder…" Udon coughed.

"Just what I'd expect of my eternal rival!" Konohamaru shouted, as he pointed towards Naruto.

"As long as you don't rant about the 'Flames of Youth'…" Naruto muttered.

"So boss, you wanna play ninja with us?" Konohamaru asked, trying not to show any eagerness.

"Well…" Naruto paused for a moment. "It's a funny concept… Ah, why not? I can practice for the exams later!"

"Exams?" Moegi asked.

"Chunin exams," Naruto explained. "I'm going to try to be a Chunin. In all honesty though, that's not the real reason I'm taking the test. I have something to prove… Right, Konohamaru?" Naruto grinned as he looked towards Konohamaru, whom he knew had a similar ambition.

"Right, boss!" Konohamaru grinned back at Naruto. Naruto brought out some dull kunai which he'd used in the academy, and looked towards Konohamaru.

"Alright, who does what?" Naruto asked.

"Well, you can be Zabuza," Konohamaru grinned as he saw Naruto's eye twitch. "I'll be you, Udon will be Kakashi-sensei, and Moegi can be Hikari!"

"Huh, interesting…" Naruto grinned. "Alright, let's do this!"

Naruto ran towards Konohamaru at ¼ of his speed and threw a kunai towards 'Kakashi', who was trying his best not to fall to the ground in an attempt to imitate the great, exhausted Copy Ninja.

After a couple hours of mindless romping (I assume this means playing.) Naruto and the Konohamaru Corps were lying on the ground; panting as they watched the clouds. "That was fun…" Naruto gasped.

"Of course, boss!" Konohamaru grinned.

Naruto was about to say something else, when he saw a cloaked shinobi quickly appear and run off with Konohamaru. Naruto sighed, and made a Kage Bunshin to watch Udon and Moegi. Naruto continued to run after the shinobi; until the two of them came to a clearing. The cloaked shinobi placed Konohamaru on the ground, and threw several kunai at Naruto; which he easily dodged.

Naruto rushed towards the shinobi, and brought his kunai up to the shinobi's neck. At the same time, Naruto noticed that the draft of air he'd created caused the hood to move up and reveal a scar across the man's nose. "Yield, Iruka-sensei," Naruto sighed.

Iruka grinned as he lowered his cape. "So you found out, huh?"

"Hey, what's the big idea?!" Konohamaru yelled, as he pointed towards Iruka.

"Relax," Iruka reassured him. "I just had to make sure that Naruto was qualified enough to test for Chunin. If he'd failed this, I would've just let you go."

"Don't worry about it, Konohamaru," Naruto reassured him. "If Iruka-sensei were really trying, I'm sure you'd be dead by now."

"Well, Naruto… Seeing as you passed the 'test', do you want to get any ramen?"

Naruto paused thoughtfully for a moment. "I think it'd be a good idea, but…"

"No you don't!" Hikari suddenly appeared out of nowhere and pulled him by the ear. "You promised you'd help me out!"

"Sorry, Iruka-sensei… I'm otherwise occupied," He laughed nervously as Iruka rolled his eyes. Iruka looked down to Konohamaru, who was pouting.

"Something wrong, gaki?" Iruka asked.

"He's so cool! At this rate, I'll never become Hokage!" Konohamaru whined.

"You won't with _that_ attitude," Iruka sighed. "You've got to give it your all. Naruto's stared at death's face millions of times and laughed. In fact, most of us shinobi have a pool running on whether he'll actually make it to Chunin."

"What'd you bet?"

"Well," Iruka proudly grinned. "I bet that he'd put on the best show."

_---_

"Well, we're alone again…" Naruto pointed out.

"Yup," Hikari replied.

"What do you want to do?" Naruto asked.

"Train," Hikari gained a sadistic gleam in her eyes, and Naruto tried his best not to back away.

"W-why?" Naruto asked, somewhat spooked out.

"You have to improve," Hikari scolded him. "There'll be stronger shinobi there. Today, we'll focus on your speed. Naturally, you have great eyesight and stamina thanks to Hitomi-chan, so we don't have to worry about that."

"Hai, hai… Hikari-hime…" Naruto groaned; completely ignoring the blush developing on her face. At one point; Hikari gave him weights which _she claimed_ totalled 200lbs, and told him to run around Konoha until he collapsed. For the rest of the night, Naruto could be heard crying and swearing vengeance. At one gruesome point, Naruto fell in exhaustion, only to have his crotch connect to an amazingly pointed rock. He would never feel the same again… until the next morning.

"Darn sadists…" Naruto muttered as he got out of bed. "I swear they're trying to kill me…"

"Naruto-kun…" Hikari sweetly called. "It's the big day!"

Naruto backed away from Hikari, figuring she was going to enact some more bodily harm unto him. When she did nothing, he slowly ate the breakfast she'd left on the table, and released his weights. Immediately, he felt stronger and faster. Naruto stared at the weights for a moment. "That's a huge improvement…"

"Yeah…" Hikari rubbed her head. "It's pretty unexpected for only 200lbs… hehe…"

Naruto's eyes shot up towards Hikari, who pointedly looked elsewhere. "What do you know that I don't?" Naruto asked suspiciously.

"Uh… Those weights were based on your total chakra. The more chakra you have; the more they weigh. I'm surprised you could actually move."

_"Yup, don't credit the infinitely powerful demon fox that ensured that the near-infinite amount of power in his body didn't cause the weights to kill him…" Hitomi rolled her eyes._

"I should be dead…" Naruto groaned.

"Just thank Hitomi-chan. She redirected _her_ chakra to ease the strain your body so that it wouldn't kill you," Hikari grinned. "Although I suppose it _was_ rash of me to give you those weights…"

"No, _really?!"_ Naruto nearly screamed. He sighed in defeat and began to eat his breakfast while wincing at the remembrance of the pain he'd felt when he'd tripped… and nearly split a ball open.

Naruto quickly washed his dish and headed towards the Academy, where the test was going to be held. When he reached the 2nd floor, he'd noticed that there were two chunin guards standing in front of the double doors in front of 'Room 301', along with a group of genin.

Naruto watched impassively as Sasuke walked towards the door and explained the _obvious _fact that it was a genjutsu. He then noticed that Lee decided to challenge Sasuke for Sakura's affections, and Naruto grinned. If there was one thing he knew; it was that Sasuke would _not_ be able to beat Lee in a pure taijutsu battle. Naruto nodded to the two chunin guards, and he watched from the balcony of the Academy Arena as Sasuke began to fight Lee.

The fight was interesting, to say the least. It naturally started with Sasuke getting pummelled. Naruto watched as Lee sped in circles around Sasuke; who was still trying to figure out whether it was ninjutsu or genjutsu being used by Lee.

"Surprised, Uchiha Sasuke?" Lee asked, as he continued to spontaneously kick Sasuke. "My moves are pure taijutsu."

Sasuke gritted his teeth, and managed to do something that surprised Naruto, and yet made him tremble with anticipation. _Sasuke activated his Sharingan_.

Naruto watched as Sasuke continued to get pummelled, and then his eyebrow rose as he saw the turtle fly through the air and pin Lee to a pillar. As soon as Naruto saw Gai, he quickly ran to room 301 in hopes of escaping the 'Genjutsu of Youth'.

"Well, I'm surprised both of you made it…" Kakashi rolled his eye, "Or so I'd say. Good luck, try not to die, you know. The usual."

Naruto wondered what he meant by 'both of you', when he finally noticed that Hikari had gone ahead of him. _Again._ Naruto shrugged. "Hey, Kakashi-sensei. You wanna make a bet with Sasuke's sensei that he'll lose to me?"

Kakashi laughed hysterically for a moment. "Why're you underestimating me? I've made a bet with all the Jounin that you'd win!"

Naruto gave Kakashi a vulpine grin and quickly jogged into the waiting room; where all examinees were waiting nervously for the test to begin. Naruto was surprised at the amount of tension.

"Hey Naruto," Shikamaru greeted Naruto. Naruto nodded in response.

"Well, if it isn't the dobe," Kiba joked as he patted Naruto on the back. As soon as the door opened, Naruto watched Sasuke get glomped by multiple genin from Konoha.

"Keep it down!" One of the other genin from leaf hissed. He had large glasses which covered his brown eyes. He had silver hair which barely covered his forehead, and a self-confident grin on his face. "These guys are just looking for a reason to attack you!"

**_"Be careful around him," _**_Hitomi warned Naruto and Hikari. **"He smells like Manda… The damned snake."**_

"Who're you?" Naruto asked; breaking the ice.

"Kabuto. It's my seventh time taking this test," He grinned. "Want any information on the other competitors?"

"How would you have it?" Sakura asked.

"Well, you know. I have some contacts…" Kabuto nervously grinned.

"Uzumaki Naruto and Sabaku no Gaara," Sasuke coldly stated.

"You have their names? That's no fun," Kabuto whined. He took out a normal deck of cards and channelled his chakra into it. "Hmm… Sabaku no Gaara… He's done 8 C-Ranks, and even 1 B-Rank!" Kabuto exclaimed. At this, many of the genin turned their head to carefully observe Kabuto. "According to this, he's even come back from all his missions unscathed! His team is comprised of his siblings, Sabaku no Temari and Sabaku no Kankuro."

"Unscathed…?" Ino's eyes widened, and she began to feel fear grip her.

"As for Uzumaki Naruto…" He channelled chakra into another card, and his eyes widened. "This is _amazing_!" Kabuto exclaimed, "He's done 3 C-Ranks, 6 B-Ranks, 2 A-Ranks, and even 1 S-Rank! His team…" Kabuto paused and looked up at Naruto for a moment, who stared back at him. "Consists of Uzumaki Hikari and its unknown how they're related."

By this point, the entire room began to shift their attention towards Naruto, who stayed impassive underneath the attention. "Well, a mission's a mission…" Suddenly, he grinned when he noticed the atmosphere was becoming even more oppressive. Naruto pointed towards all the assembled genin, and yelled, "You guys don't scare me! I'm going to be the future Hokage!"

Behind the doors, Kakashi let out a brief laugh, and walked towards the waiting area for the Jounin sensei.

All of the Rookie 9 were staring at Naruto in unparalleled shock, and Shikamaru let out a small laugh. "Troublesome… he's raised everybody's spirits."

At this point, Naruto watched from the corner of his eye as a genin from Oto ran towards Kabuto at the average speed of a Chunin. Kabuto moved his head away from the straight punch, but his glasses were suddenly shattered and he fell to the ground to vomit.

"Shut the hell up!" The genin commanded, showing just how tense he was. Kabuto wiped the acid off of his lips, and he slowly brought his head up to level the genin with a terrifying glare.

Suddenly, the front of the room was covered completely in smoke, and a deep voice boomed out, "Shut up, punks!* Naruto smirked when he saw the smoke settle. Ibiki and a squad of chunin were standing at the front of the room confidently. "I am the examiner of the first test, Morino Ibiki," He paused when he saw Kabuto. "If you want to fight; either wait, or be disqualified."

The genin barely inclined his head, and headed back to his team.

"Alright. This test will be a written test," Ibiki smirked as he began to leak small amounts of killing intent into the air to unsettle the participants.

**_"Is he trying to start something?" _**_Hitomi licked her lips in anticipation._

_"Nope," Naruto replied._

"Take one of these numbers and sit where it tells you," Ibiki indicated a card with the number '1' inscribed upon it. "You have 30 seconds to get your card, exam, and sit in the room."

Immediately, all the genin began to push and shove, while Naruto and Hikari remained at the very back of the 'line-up'. When 29 seconds had passed, they casually walked into the room and took seats at opposite ends.

"Well, looks like you two just made it," Ibiki grinned.

"Why be early?" Naruto shrugged. "If you rush headfirst into danger, you're more likely to die. If you wait too long, the danger will pass; as will the opportunity."

"Oh, really? I wonder why nobody thought about that…" Ibiki innocently commented, as he made some marks on his clipboard. _'Uzumaki's – Have the required intuition' _"Alright, listen up. These are the rules, and I'm only going to explain them once. Rule #1: You are given 10 points at the beginning, one point per question. For each question you get wrong, you lose one point. Rule #2: The pass-fail decision will be decided by your team's total points. Rule #3: If you are caught cheating, you will lose two points from your total. You're all trying to become Chunin. If you are a shinobi, act like a first-rate one."

Naruto frowned. The Chunin in the room looked like they could sense chakra easily… Meaning that he'd either have to cheat without chakra, or get all the questions done.

"Also…" Ibiki chuckled, "If _anybody_ on the team gets a 0… the entire team fails."

Suddenly, there was a large outburst by all of the genin. Naruto noticed that there were three genin, save himself and Hikari, who weren't saying anything. They didn't even seem to be shocked. Which meant…

"Lastly, you'll receive the 10th question 45 minutes after the exam begins," Ibiki finished. "Begin!"

There was the sound of paper turning over. Naruto simply kept his hands in his laps, drawing the attention of all the examiners within the room. To their surprise, he had a small smirk on his face. "You've made your move, just wait for mine," Naruto mouthed silently. Two of the chunin in the room smirked, while the others all trained their eyes on Naruto – completely ignoring the other examinees.

**_"It's time for me to give you a lecture," _**_Hitomi sighed. **"You know how chakra is formed?"**_

_"Spiritual and physical energy combining," Naruto habitually replied._

**_"Do you know what killer intent is?"_**

_"Super-concentrated spiritual energy…" Naruto paused for a moment, having realized something._

**_"So then how can you get your physical energy into the air, without them noticing?" _**_Hitomi asked; her crimson eyes full of mirth._

As the chunin watched Naruto, they were put on edge when he closed his eyes suddenly, and a small grin formed on his face. _"If they're sending spiritual energy into the air, it must be done in increments…" _Naruto concentrated deeply, and began to sense every small movement made. The movement of the pencils, the whiz of kunai flying through the air to disqualify cheaters… A small connection between two people…

As Naruto began to concentrate even further, he finally found the increments between the bursts of spiritual energy, or killing intent. It went for exactly 10 seconds before stopping for another 20. The plan was to let them get exposed to it, and then withdraw it… Allowing the examinees to relax for 10 seconds – the time it took to recover –; before suddenly sending out another burst.

Naruto paused for a moment; trying to figure out how to take control of the chakra without leading any traces back to him. Naruto was so engrossed in his pondering; he'd become completely still. If he'd tried to balance on top of a stalagmite with a small; perfectly square platform.

_"What's he doing?" Hikari asked Hitomi. She'd easily copied off of Ino, who'd been sitting beside her._

**_"He's learning something."_**

_"I didn't know you could learn during a test," Hikari remarked._

**_"Well, only if you have somebody as awesome as me connected to you," _**_Hitomi grinned; revealing rows of sharp teeth._

Naruto nearly twitched when he began to gain more clarity. He could literally see the energy through his closed eyelids. He saw a small connection between Ino and Sakura which was starting to fade away, and he also saw a mass of crimson energy within Sasuke's eyes… He filed that observation away for future reference.

In addition to that, he saw the gaze of the chunin who were watching him. He counted that 95% of the Chunin were still watching him; waiting for him to make his move. As he began to see more; things became more complicated. Naruto saw a small strand of white connecting him and Hikari; showing no signs of fading. As he tried to examine the strand; he noticed that it had small flecks of maroon and crimson in it…

Naruto was broken out of his observations when he finally thought of how he could gather the information. Naruto began to focus intensely upon his physical energy, and as soon as the next burst of spiritual energy was sent out; Naruto sent his own physical energy out and caused it to meld under his desk and form into a small pocket of chakra. Immediately, Naruto switched his focus to a new Jutsu which had been nearly instinctual for him.

_"The Kage Bunshin works upon intent. If I intend it to look exactly like me; it'll look exactly like me. Therefore, if I intend for it to look like a small bug…" _Naruto cracked a grin as he formed a Kage Bunshin in the shape of a fly, without forming a handsign.

As the Bunshin flew towards one of the participants whom Naruto had been observing, he saw fit to crack open his eyes and give the examiners a cheeky grin. Naruto quickly flipped over his sheet and wrote his name on it, as well as the date. As soon as he had finished writing that information; the answers to the test were suddenly in his head.

Naruto grinned as he began to write the elusive answers for the Chunin exams. The Chunin watched in awe as Naruto completed his test 1 minute after he'd started. With a wink towards Ibiki, Naruto flipped his page over again, and began to draw a large fox with nine-tails on the other side. After all; why not add insult to injury? Naruto flipped the test over again, and wrote in the corner:  
_"Three snakes, one spy. Hiding amongst the leaves, it gains trust. With trust comes weakness, with weakness comes failure. The helmed snake is not to be underestimated." **(Kabuto = helmet)**_

Naruto allowed himself a small smirk as he turned the paper over again. He phrased those words so that it would sound exactly as if his words were the ramblings of a naïve schoolchild. That way; he could warn the examiners… if they were smart enough.

Naruto flipped his sheet over again, and simply began to let his mind wander. By the time he'd returned to reality, he was met with Ibiki cheerfully stating, "Congratulations, you've passed!"

Hearing those words, Naruto rolled his eyes and contemplated whether or not he should burn his paper. Finally having decided on _not_ burning his paper, he waited for Anko's flashy entrance.

Or rather, what should've been a flashy entrance. Anko simply threw a barrel through the window and rolled in after it. As she was about to land, she threw two kunai and anchored a large sheet of poster paper with the words 'Second examiner, Mitarashi Anko is here!' printed in large, bold kanji.

"There's no time to celebrate! I'm the second examiner, Mitarashi Anko!" Anko proclaimed.

Naruto was about to face-palm, when he saw Anko throw a kunai towards the poster… which exploded in a flash of colors. Naruto grinned as the genin followed Anko to the 'Forest of Death'. This would be _fun_…

Naruto tuned out as Anko explained the rules, considering he'd already gone over them with Anko. By this point, Naruto was nearly asleep and he barely noticed Hikari stand behind him. Naruto blinked when he saw Anko throw a kunai.

"Hey gaki, don't doze off!" Anko chastised Naruto. Naruto knew without looking that she'd cut his cheek. Confirming his suspicions, Anko reappeared on his side, and licked the blood off of his cheek. "Delicious…"

"There's plenty more where that came from," Naruto replied. Anko grinned and took the kunai from the grass shinobi who'd snuck behind her in order to hand it to her. **_"Death, deception and snakes… I do believe you're screwed," _**_Hitomi yawned. **"You're not strong enough to take care of the Snake Sannin."**_

Naruto watched Anko to see if she'd made the connection, but it seemed she hadn't. So instead, Naruto continued to keep up his façade of listening. Finally, she finished talking and handed them all some forms. Naruto grinned as he read them through. She'd taken his suggestions to heart, consequences be damned. Naruto quickly signed the sheet of paper and followed Hikari to hand it in.

"A team of two?" The Chunin who'd received their papers frowned. "Are you sure?"

"I don't mind," Naruto shrugged. "If anybody wanted me dead; I'd be dead by now."

"If you're sure…" The Chunin sighed as he handed Naruto and Hikari a scroll with the kanji for 'Earth' on it. Hikari safely tucked the scroll into her bag and they proceeded to gate 50; waiting for the signal.

When the signal had finally been given, Naruto and Hikari went at full pace towards the tower in the center of the training grounds. Naruto grinned when he saw that nobody else was there. "Hey, Hikari-hime… Do you know why a Kage Bunshin disappears after taking one hit?"

"Each injury it gets takes some strength out of its chakra stores," Hikari replied.

"Well then…" Naruto grinned, "What say we try something completely dangerous?"

"Which is…?" Hikari frowned.

Naruto simply brought his hands up to form a seal. _"How many tails can I handle with my sanity intact?"_

**_"Three," _**_Hitomi instinctually replied._

_"Could I have 3 tails, please?"_

**"Let's get wild!" **Naruto yelled. Suddenly, multitudes of chakra began to fly out from Naruto; dampening the atmosphere immensely. All of the shinobi within Konoha immediately sensed the massive influx of demonic chakra, and many of them snapped their heads up; bringing forth hilarious results.

Sarutobi grumbled as one of his calligraphy brushes fell underneath his desk. With a sigh, he crawled under the desk in order to retrieve it; when he suddenly felt a massive influx of demonic chakra. Sarutobi snapped his head up with as much force as he could muster; causing his desk to break in half and make the contents of the desk to fall on him. Among those contents were: ink, brushes, paperwork and glue.

Kakashi, who'd sent a Kage Bunshin to wait in the lobby for his students; was quietly giggling in the hot springs. He was currently peeking from behind one of the bushes in the female area, and enjoying the sight. When he felt the massive influx of demonic chakra, he brought his head up in shock, causing many of the women to squeal in protest, and… lust? In fact, upon closer inspection; it became clear that Kakashi had removed his mask – revealing amazing features. For the next ten minutes, Kakashi was chased by awestruck fan women, and anti-perverts.

Sakura, who had to crawl underneath Sasuke's legs for some reason, felt a massive influx of demonic chakra. She brought her head up in shock; causing Sasuke to be rendered unable to reproduce. Orochimaru, who'd been watching the encounter, shook his head in regret. _'I knew I should've taken him when he was an academy student…'_

Konohamaru, who'd been testing on the henge, was currently performing his rendition of the 'Harem no Jutsu'. Iruka had managed to withstand the nosebleed; when Konohamaru and Iruka felt the massive influx of demonic chakra. Konohamaru, losing concentration, somehow managed to add epic-kawaii fox-ears to his Harem no Jutsu. In addition, he was also rendered unable to keep the smoke in place. Revealing two perfectly smooth, nipple-less breasts. Regardless of the fact, Iruka went rocketing 15 ft from a nosebleed; flying into Kakashi and causing him to be caught by the fan girls/anti-perverts.

By then, Naruto managed to gather three tails worth of demonic chakra, and all the genin in the 'Forest of Death' were frozen to their boots. All battles which had been going on had suddenly stopped when they felt the chakra. Naruto grinned and brought his hands together for a familiar seal. **"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu: Kyokudo! (Shadow Clone Jutsu: Extreme)"**

Suddenly, Naruto lost one tail and a poof of smoke indicated a clone of Naruto forming. The new clone had one tail's worth of chakra, allowing it to take numerous hits without dissipating. **"This'll be fun," **Naruto grinned; his voice having taken on demonic qualities.

By then, all the shinobi who'd felt the surge of chakra began to storm towards the Hokage's office. When one of them forcefully opened the door, he yelled, "Hokage-sama! We must kill the demon…" He trailed off when he saw Sarutobi with ink splattered all over him, and paperwork glued to him.

Orochimaru sighed when he saw Sasuke turn on his Sharingan after recovering from the pain. _'Such beautiful eyes… I must have them… They'd probably make him good in bed,' _Orochimaru mused. Having settled on a decision, Orochimaru rushed towards Sasuke.

Back with Naruto, one of the genin teams had finally gathered the courage to go towards the tower. Naruto grinned when he saw the team approaching, and he quickly threw a kunai towards the one with the scroll. As soon as Naruto had thrown the kunai, the person had predictably blocked, allowing Naruto one second's time to get a hit in. Naruto hit the boy with an uppercut to the jaw; causing him to go flying. Naruto jumped after the boy and folded his hands together. When the two of them reached the same height, Naruto used all of his strength to smash the boy into the ground. All that remained of him was a two-foot crater.

Naruto looked towards the other two team-mates; his scarlet eyes boring into them. **"Give me the scroll and I'll let you go."**

The two remaining shinobi looked at each other and nodded. The only kunoichi of the team threw the scroll to Naruto, and they went off in the other direction as fast as they could. "Well, I guess we're done," Naruto grinned.

The two of them went into the tower, and Naruto tossed the scrolls on the ground and opened them. As soon as they opened, it revealed an angered Iruka, who went to punch Naruto. "You moron! Why'd you release it's power?!"

Naruto easily dodged the hit, and replied, "I did it to make the new record for fastest completion of the 'Forest of Death'."

Iruka blinked, "You managed to get it in one hour… congratulations…" He sighed. "You know that the council will be after your head?"

"They won't get it," Naruto grinned. "The law's against them. Read the waiver which was signed and approved by the council and all genin participants."

Iruka blinked in confusion. "I'll do that…" With a quick handsign, he vanished and left Naruto and Hikari alone.

"Wanna go beat on the 'Last Uchiha'?" Naruto grinned, knowing exactly what she'd say.

"Oh, hell yeah…" She brushed some hair away from her face, "Let's get wild!"

**_"Naruto-kun… I wouldn't do that…" _**_Hitomi warned._

_ "Why not…?"_

_ **"You're going to feel **_**immense_ pain in thirty seconds… You're awakening," _**_Hitomi replied._ Already, Naruto could understand what she was saying. His nose began to twitch and his ears were moving on their own. His eyesight suddenly became blurred, and Naruto blinked to regain his eyesight.

"Shit…" Naruto muttered. "We have to go back."

"Why?" Hikari asked.

Naruto ignored her for a moment, and gestured to his clone. "Find Sasuke and attack him. If he's being attacked, explode. If he's not, just force him to submission and prove that you're a clone."

The clone nodded, and Hikari stared at Naruto, dumbfounded. "You haven't told me why."

"Becau—" Naruto winced, and brought his hand up to his ear. When he brought his hand down; he was shocked to see blood. "I'm…" Naruto muttered, "Awakening…"

To Be Continued.

* * *

**Yes, awakening. Basically, he's gaining increased eyesight, hearing, smelling, touch, and taste. He'll also be able to sense chakra more accurately. Too powerful? Probably. Powerful foes? Hell yeah :D.**

**Anyways, I have some ideas for the invasion. I'd like opinions on them pl0x.:  
1) Yondaime revived by either Orochimaru/Sandaime. He fights against Orochimaru at _some point_. Sarutobi can either live or die; your choice.  
2) Sandaime dies.  
3) Bait + Switch on Sandaime, it turns out to be an ANBU who's fighting against Orochimaru. Choose the identity of the ANBU.  
4) Itachi comes back the day of the invasion. I'm trying to portray him as 'On Konoha's side'; therefore he breaks through barrier + Fights Orochimaru.  
5) Your pick.**

**Lastly... What do you think if Naruto goes feral from 'Awakening'? It'd add character... lol, anyways, enjoy.**

**(Like how I used technicalities to ensure that Naruto can't get imprisoned/executed cuz of the use of his demonic chakra? I do too. Also; can't wait to see what the Naru-clone does... One tail's worth of chakra in an explosion... epic win :D)**

**So; how crappy was it (this chapter)?**

**- Laterz**


	9. Beginning Bloodlust

**Mmk. Preliminaries, I skip most of the fights, save for two. One of them's short, the other's longer. I was thinking of having Naruto vs. Hikari, but we all know that'd turn out badly. (My strategy was: Use some epic illusion that makes everybody think they're fighting, while they just chill)**

**Anyways, here's what I'm thinking: Yondaime gets revived, Sarutobi lives, Itachi doesn't come back, Orochimaru... well, we'll see.**

* * *

Naruto watched his clone's retreating figure with increasing difficulty as his vision became blurred. Naruto began to sway on his feet, and he collapsed into the waiting arms of Hikari. Hikari pursed her lips and jumped towards the tower as quickly as she could.

Naruto's clone (henceforth referred to as 'Naruto', or 'the clone') gracefully weaved through the trees; passing many of the teams on his way. None of the teams were foolish enough to challenge him; the mere presence of his potent chakra scared them to their core. The clone flew towards the area it had sensed Sasuke in, and it leaped out of the trees to watch a scene – which would have been mildly amusing any other time.

Sasuke gritted his teeth as he dodged the sword, and he threw three kunai towards Orochimaru; ducking at the same time. Sasuke sloppily formed seals and brought his hands up to his mouth; yelling, "**Katon: Gōkakyu no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique)"**

A large flame flew from Sasuke's hands, and the clone watched in mild interest, as Orochimaru appeared to be burnt by the large fireball. Naruto watched as Orochimaru reappeared behind Sasuke and attacked him again, with twice the speed this time. Naruto assumed that Orochimaru was trying to increase Sasuke's speed for some reason. Sasuke nearly tripped several times; proving that he was reaching his limits.

Regardless; Sasuke managed to pull of a semi-admirable fight. He was saved by Naruto, however reluctantly; when Naruto rushed in and swung wildly at Orochimaru. Orochimaru grinned, "Kukuku, what brings you here, Naruto-kun?"

"Nothing personal," Naruto grinned; his tail swishing wildly behind him. "I'm afraid you have my prey."

"Oh, do I?" Orochimaru laughed again, "I'm afraid he's mine."

"Alright," Naruto grinned. "I guess we'll have to fight over this."

Orochimaru gritted his teeth. From the looks of it, Naruto was running a high off of demonic chakra. Meaning there was only one way to do this… Orochimaru formed seals at an amazing speed and yelled out, "**Gogyō Fūin! (Five Elements Seal)"**

Immediately; purple chakra formed on the fingertips of Orochimaru's right hand. Orochimaru carelessly thrust his hand towards Naruto's stomach; which extending a snake to bite Sasuke; which finished its task before Orochimaru's finger made contact with Naruto. At the exact time Orochimaru impacted his fingers onto Naruto's seal; Naruto finished his seals and yelled, **"Onipon: Kamikaze Bakuhatsu no Jutsu! (Demonic Release: Divine Wind Explosion Technique)"**

Immediately, a horrifying explosion occurred. Sasuke, who was behind a tree at the moment, was saved from the brunt of the attack; only to have to deal with the massive shrapnel. Sasuke's reproductive system would never be the same again… There was a reason testicles were supposed to be protected… At the same time; a massive piece of shrapnel embedded itself into Sasuke's shoulder; where Orochimaru's snake had formed a foreign seal on him. The seal began to shift immediately, and it took a new shape; changing color from black to crimson.

Orochimaru – who had been within 3 metres of Naruto – was not as lucky. Naruto's explosion technique required a massive overload of the tenketsu within one second. The dispersing method of the Kage Bunshin would not act in time; causing the pressure to be relieved through redirection. All the chakra was redirected outside of the body; causing massive chakra burns to appear on body of the user. Naruto didn't stop there; however, he turned all of his chakra into wind chakra.

Combined with the pure explosive tendencies of demonic chakra; this technique was likely to kill any lesser man, and scar any greater man for life. Thus, when Orochimaru had his legs, arms, stomach and groin pierced by massive splinters which could be seen coming from 2km away – it was no surprise that he screamed in amazing agony. "You…" Orochimaru glared at Naruto, annoyed that a mere boy had managed to take him by surprise. "I'll kill you!"

When the dust cleared, Orochimaru was surprised to see that Naruto wasn't even there anymore. Orochimaru screamed his anger to the heavens. "Well, if it isn't _sensei_," Orochimaru heard from behind him.

Orochimaru slowly turned his head around, and gulped visibly when he saw Anko. "Hello, Anko-chan…"

"Hello, Orochimaru-_sama_," Anko grinned evilly. The rest was better left unmentioned…

Meanwhile, Sarutobi was facing a crisis in the form of the Hokage's second-greatest bane: the council.

"We want the demon dead!" One of the civilian council members yelled; to which there were murmurs of agreement and disagreement.

"On what claims?" Sarutobi asked, levelling the man with a steely gaze.

The man visibly gulped, but continued. "He released the Kyuubi's power!"

"Your point?" Sarutobi calmly asked, glad that Anko had informed him regarding the changes in the Chunin exam's waiver.

"It proves he can not be trusted," Danzo calmly replied for the man.

"Well, I'm afraid…" Sarutobi grinned, and Danzo felt all his carefully sculpted plans crumble to dust. "We can't do that… Take a look at the waiver for the Chunin exam."

Danzo skimmed over the waiver, and his eyes nearly bulged out when he read the portion which had been added by Anko. "This is preposterous!" He exclaimed.

"I'm afraid not. It seems that Naruto can't be charged with anything considering that shinobi are expected to use all of their tricks for this exam," Sarutobi slyly replied.

Danzo gritted his teeth, when inspiration suddenly struck him. "Very well then," He curtly replied. "On to the next topic then… The Namikaze clan, and their sole survivor."

Loud gasps were emitted from nearly all those present; save for the Hokage and Hyuuga Hiashi. "Who is this survivor, Danzo?" Hiashi casually asked.

This time, it was Sarutobi's turn to grit his teeth. "Surely you can't be serious. If there had been a survivor of this clan, we would have known."

"I suspect the Yondaime himself hid his sole survivor…" Danzo allowed himself a small smirk. "The last of the Namikaze clan is no other than _Uzumaki Naruto!_"

"You can't be serious! Where's your proof?" Haruno Mesuinu, the aunt of Haruno Sakura, asked.

"I recently found proof in the Hokage's office," Danzo replied; as he threw some papers in front of the council, who looked at the papers curiously.

"Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto…" Hiashi murmured. _'How could you keep this from me, Minato?' _"Is this true, Hokage-sama?"

Saying Sarutobi was enraged would be an understatement. He was positively fuming. Luckily, he managed to think his way to a solution. "It is true; however," He gave Danzo a small smile. "It was marked as an SS-Class secret by the Yondaime."

At this point, Danzo had lost his cool. "Preposterous! My shinobi found no proof when they searched your office!"

"Excuse me, Danzo?" Sarutobi asked, a small smile playing on his lips.

"There is no proof documenting this as an SS-Class secret," Danzo replied weakly.

"Well… I'm afraid that SS-Class secrets are never documented…" Sarutobi coughed, in order to prevent himself from laughing. "In addition… Searching a Hokage's office is considered treason…"

"I did no such thing!" Danzo cried, as the ANBU appeared to drag him off.

"Now, then… does anybody else wish to be charged with insubordination?" Sarutobi jokingly asked.

The council mutely shook their heads; yet one courageous individual still managed to speak up. "Hokage-sama, I believe we should enact the Clan Restoration Act upon Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto."

"Why is that?" Sarutobi asked; all of his happiness having turned into annoyance.

"The Namikaze is a clan of prestige," The man replied. "It is only right that the clan of our strongest Hokage graces this village once again with its presence."

"I second the motion," Haruno said.

Sarutobi rubbed his temple with his hands and sighed. "It is impossible for the civilian council to enact a shinobi law."

"Why?!" Haruno asked.

"The civilian council only has precedence over _civilian_ matters, not shinobi matters," Sarutobi replied.

"In that case, I second the motion," Homura said.

Sarutobi gritted his teeth, "Very well… We shall vote."

After the results were in, Sarutobi nearly did a "Kamikaze Bakuhatsu no Jutsu" of his own. He simply settled for sighing. The motion had won, 6-5. Only the Hyuuga, Aburame, Inuzuka, Nara and Hokage had gone against the motion. "Very well then… We shall implement this act within half a year."

_---_

Hikari looked at Naruto sympathetically. He was currently twitching in immense pain. _"Why is he the only one going through this?"_

_**"For some reason, I couldn't turn you into a hanyo…" **__Hitomi absentmindedly replied. She was currently working frantically inside of the seal to ensure that everything went according to plan._

At that exact moment – equivalent to the time at which Naruto's shadow clone had exploded – Naruto began to seize and foam at the mouth. _"What's happening?" Hikari frantically asked. When she heard no reply, she began to worry even more._

_---With Naruto---_

_Naruto looked around in confusion. He was currently in a landscape he'd never seen before. The most disturbing part was that this place seemed oddly familiar to Naruto. As if he'd once lived here, loved here, and died here… Yet that couldn't happen. He was alive, right?_

_With the conclusion of that thought, a large roar shook the vicinity. Naruto looked around – or at least tried to. Eventually, he saw a massive Kitsune with eight tails bounding towards him. Naruto looked at the Kitsune with unconcealed awe and fear. As the Kitsune was about to collide with him; he braced himself for a hit… Yet he was unharmed._

_Naruto noticed that the massive Kitsune was lying in the ground somehow subdued. It was at this point that Naruto realized he had no control over this body. As if it weren't actually his own…_

_Smaller Kitsune with only four or five tails came out of the distance, and Naruto could tell that this body was tensing up for a fight. This time, nothing happened._

_"Kyuubi-sama!" One of the smaller four-tailed Kitsune called. "We bring grave news!"_

_**"What is it?"**_ _Naruto heard a deep growl emanate from his mouth; sounding vaguely familiar to that of Hitomi's._

_"The humans have attacked our den!" A larger Kitsune called. "They seem to be in league with Jinui-sama!"_

_As soon as the Kitsune finished its words, Naruto heard a blood-curling growl echo throughout the entire area, and the eight-tailed Kitsune lying on the ground was no more. __**"The human have invaded again? Come, we must teach them a lesson!"**_

_Naruto could sense himself moving at immense speeds. One moment he'd been in a large clearing by the mountains, and the next moment he was in the mountains themselves… When Naruto had shaken off the feeling of vertigo, he saw something which made his blood boil._

_There were countless shinobi attacking one of the dens, and as Naruto saw one of the small one-tailed kits getting stabbed, immense feelings of malice erupted from Naruto, and just as the Kyuubi attacked; he did so as well._

_Naruto relished the pained expression on the eyes of the men before they were vaporized. The night wore on, and the Kyuubi finally snapped. It began methodically eliminating the shinobi; until there was only one left. Naruto watched as the man began to back away from the Kyuubi; fear evident on its face._

_**"Izumi…" **__The Kyuubi growled. __**"Why did you attack my den?!"**_

_"You're a monster!" He screamed. "You kill as if our lives are worth nothing! I can't believe I actually fell in love with you!"_

_The Kyuubi visibly recoiled at these words, and it began to growl deeply. __**"I am a demon. **__**Not**__** a monster…" **__By this point, the growl had become a full out roar, __**"You attacked my den, and you assume I will let your transgressions go?!"**_

_Naruto saw various images float in front of him and he knew that the Kyuubi was having a hard time with this. He saw images of the man in front of him, Izumi, with a beautiful red-haired woman. He watched as they ate together, walked hand-in-hand, and other various loving gestures._

_"Fine! Do your worst, monster!" Izumi cried out._

_Naruto willingly moved with the Kyuubi, and lashed one of its tails out at the man. As he was no more, Naruto felt the Kyuubi fall to the ground in sadness._

_"Kyuubi-sama!" One of the Kitsune called in concern._

_**"I'm fine…" **__The Kyuubi morosely replied._

_For what seemed like years to him; Naruto experienced what could be considered the entire lifespan of the Kyuubi – who he realized was Hitomi. He watched her countless heartbreaks, mistakes, and betrayals. As time wore on, Naruto found himself clenching his non-existent fist in pure fury._

_'I will __never__ let this happen again…' He swore._

_---After---_

Hikari watched in anticipation as Naruto's seizing began to stop. Just as Hikari sighed in relief; four tails of pure crimson chakra extended from him, and the illusion which had been placed on him by Hitomi dropped. _"Something I want to know…?"_

_**"Who knows," **__Hitomi shakily replied. __**"He gained four tails from his Awakening…"**_

Naruto groaned as he woke up, "God, my head feels like it's been hit by a mallet…"

"Well, I suppose you're just unlucky…" Hikari murmured. "Other than that, you're fine?"

"Well… I have a migraine and it sounds like you're yelling in my ear," Naruto sourly replied. "Huh, that perfume suits you."

"It's just a little something I picked up," Hikari lightly blushed.

"Well…" Naruto groaned as he got up and stretched. "I wonder how long this'll take to get used to…" _"Did I really see that…?_

_**"Yup," **__Hitomi glumly replied._

_"I'm sorry…"_

_**"Don't be," **__Hitomi sharply replied. __**"I hate pity."**_

Naruto rolled his eyes, and he sighed. "How long have I been out?"

"Four days. The exam's supposed to end in one hour," Hikari replied. "Will you be alright?"

"Yeah… I think… _so_," Naruto replied, lightly growling on the last word.

"If you're sure…" Hikari sighed, unconvinced. "Anyways, we should get ready for the next round. The old man said there'll probably be preliminaries."

"Well…" Naruto licked his lips in anticipation. "**That'll be great**," He replied in a demonic voice.

"Alright, that's creepy…" Hikari pointed out. "Could you _not_ change your voice?"

"I'm changing my voice?" Naruto raised his eyebrows in surprise. "I didn't know…"

"Hmm…" Hikari sighed. "Whatever. I'm going to sleep for the next hour," She waved him off as she laid down on the futon which Naruto had previously been occupying. Naruto lightly smiled and scratched his head lightly, before stopping.

_"Why do I have ears… on the top of my head…?" Naruto slowly asked._

_**"Well, let's see… A four-tailed Kitsune **_**without**_** ears is unheard of…" **__Hitomi sarcastically replied._

Naruto sighed and sat in an empty chair. Ever since he'd woken up, there was a small voice in the back of his head – which wasn't Hitomi – that had been growling about some sort of Tanuki. Naruto rolled his eyes as the voice continued to talk about mutilating and killing. Yet as the voice prattled on, Naruto found himself becoming more tempted to follow its every will. _"Are you hearing this too?"_

_**"It's your bloodlust."**_

_"Well… I'm guessing nothing can be done about that, so can you at least hide my ears and tail?"_

Soon, Naruto felt a tingling sensation around his rear and head; signalling that the tail and ears were beginning to recede. Naruto sighed and waited for the hour to pass. It passed relatively slowly, but eventually a bell rang signalling that the 2nd stage of the exam was over. Naruto lightly shook Hikari, who woke up without a fuss, and the two of them went down to an arena inside the tower.

The two of them were only mildly surprised to see the other candidates, their sensei, Sarutobi, and the proctors standing _somewhere_ within the arena. Hikari spotted Kakashi waving towards them, and she pulled Naruto towards Kakashi. "So, I hear you two broke the record," Kakashi casually greeted the two of them.

"Of course," Naruto grinned. "Were you expecting anything less?"

"Well…" Kakashi mused. "Alright, do me a favour at the very least."

"Which would be?" Naruto asked.

"_Never_ release _that_ chakra again unless I'm close by," Kakashi glared at Naruto, remembering the torture he'd gone through from the 'fan-girls' and 'anti-perverts'.

"Uh… Why not? I managed to take a good chunk out of Orochimaru…" Naruto rubbed his head sheepishly.

"Oh, that was you? Good job, gaki," Anko laughed as she ruffled his hair. "Too bad he escaped afterwards…"

"You still sound happy," Hikari pointed out.

"I tortured him," Anko cheerily replied.

"Oh…" Naruto, Hikari and Kakashi simultaneously replied. The three of them knew that what Anko defined as torture was likely worse than castration.

"Except, I had my work cut out for me," Anko pouted. "He already had his arms, legs and groin gone!"

Naruto nervously laughed, "I'm still trying to perfect that technique… Apparently an explosion using wind _and that_ chakra isn't the best choice…"

The other three people in the conversation sweat-dropped, and Kakashi laughed, "Well, as long as you don't use it against us!"

"Darn," Naruto gloomily replied. "It would've done well in pranks…"

_'Is he trying to kill us…?'_ Kakashi and Anko thought. Hikari was simply trying not to burst out laughing. She knew she'd break a rib if she did.

The next matches passed in a blur, until the match which preceded Naruto's. The dashboard read 'Hyuuga Hinata vs. Hyuuga Neji'. Naruto raised an eyebrow, and looked downwards, where the two of them were walking. Naruto briefly wondered what would happen if the world were more comedic…

_---Pure Comedic Value---_

_"Hinata-sama…" Neji began, "I'm afraid that you can not win this fight. I am fated to win."_

_"B-but…" Hinata started, when she was cut off by Neji._

_"With my Byakugan, I can see your hesitation, and I must request that you back down. I will not be held responsible for any injury that will happen because of your pathetic nature," Neji spat._

_Immediately, Hinata's gaze turned to steel, and she glared at him with all the malice she had. Neji became visibly disturbed. "I will make you retract those words…"_

_Naruto watched in amusement as Neji was owned in every possible way. The most hilarious part was that Hinata didn't revert to the Jūken. Instead, she decided to use brawl moves. In the end, Neji had been kicked in the groin three times, kneed in the face twice, and at one point, Hinata had taken out a whip and yelled, "Say my name, bitch!"_

_"Hinata-sama!" Neji cried in pain._

_---End---_

_**"You are messed up…" **__Hitomi muttered. __**"Then again… Aren't we all? I suppose as long as he doesn't spew some bullshit about fate…"**_

Naruto shook the thoughts out of his head, and instead concentrated on the real match. Neji had only spared Hinata one look of contempt before speaking. "Before we begin, let me warn you about one thing, Hinata-sama. You should give up," Neji glared at her. "You are not suited to be a shinobi. You are too kind. You seek harmony and avoid trouble… And you just go around and follow somebody else's plan! You don't even have any self confidence!"

Naruto blinked at the harsh words of Neji, and was pondering whether or not he should interrupt or not… When he noticed Neji continuing, he listened in some more.

"You always feel inferior. That's why you thought it would've been fine to remain a genin! You only registered for your team-mates, and the truth is… you are here unwillingly. Am I wrong?" Neji finally asked.

"Y-you're wrong! You're wrong…" Hinata timidly replied. "I… I just… wanted to change myself, so I willingly…" She trailed off. By this point, everybody was watching with bated breath; while sympathizing with Hinata. Naruto's carefree demeanour had nearly disappeared, and he was focussing intently on the match.

"Hinata-sama…" Neji began again. "You are indeed a spoiled child from the head family. People cannot change! A failure is a failure! His personality and power will not change!" Neji yelled, unknowingly invoking the wrath of Hikari, Hitomi and Naruto. Kakashi watched the two in interest, as they attempted to prevent an outburst. "People cannot change… So that's why terms like 'elite' and 'failure' exist. Everybody judges you on how good your face, head, abilities, body shape and personality are. There are things that cannot be changed. People suffer due to their limits, and live. You cannot change fate, and you were fated to be a failure." **(I cut out about ½ of Neji's bullshit around there… Sad, huh?)**

"That… **is utter bullshit!"** Naruto roared, **"Fate does not exist!" **At this, his whisker marks began to deepen, and Kakashi looked at him in alarm. **"I know many things, Hyuuga Neji…" **Naruto growled quietly. **"Fate exists to be manipulated, just as death exists to create balance… Beat him up, Hinata!"**

Hinata's head raised, and she stopped fidgeting. Neji narrowed his eyes as he saw all traces of nervousness leave Hinata. Neji looked in shock as her eyes held complete determination. "So you are not going to give up? Don't blame me later on," He scoffed.

Hinata formed a set of hand signs and murmured, **"Byakugan."** Immediately, the veins around her eyes became more pronounced, and the veins within her eyes themselves became more pronounced.

_**'Those are some good eyes…' **__Hitomi mused. __**'The eyes of somebody who'll fight to the death…'**_

Hinata then shifted into the stance of her clan's J­­ūken, with one leg twisted in front of the other, and both hands extended to differing degrees. "Neji-nii-san… Let's fight!"

Neji simply activated his Byakugan and slid into a similar stance. "Very well…"

"They're using the same Hyuuga style…" Lee murmured from beside Naruto.

"Are they?" Naruto asked.

"Yes… The Hyuuga style is said to be the strongest in hand-to-hand combat… It's what makes me believe the strongest genin is on my team… That is Hyuuga Neji…"

Naruto and Hikari remained silent, simply watching the battle unfold in front of them. The two competitors leaped forward and Hinata thrust a chakra-laced palm outwards; only for it to be blocked by Neji. For every attack which Hinata made, Neji blocked and countered with ease. The stalemate between the two continued for minutes, before Hinata got hit in the chest by Neji. Hinata coughed up some blood; disregarding it in order to fight Neji again. No words were exchanged for the entire duration; however, it became apparent that Hinata's movements were slowing down. Eventually, Neji managed to get two more hits on Hinata's heart.

"I won't… lose…" Hinata muttered, as she tried to get up.

"Why must you do this?" Neji asked, "You will not win either way."

"I do it… because I can see that you are suffering worse than me…" Hinata weakly replied. Neji's face contorted in anger, and he rushed towards Hinata to deliver a killing blow. As he got closer, the proctor began to rush towards Neji, but it became apparent that he wouldn't make it in time.

Naruto shot a quick look towards Hikari, who nodded, and the two of them jumped off of the ledge. _"I'm not going to make it!" _Naruto assessed all of the possible options, and only one came to mind. _"How do I Shunshin…"_

_**"I wonder…" **__Hitomi pretended to think. __**"Try this. Oni-Shunshin. We need to increase your repertoire of demonic techniques anyways."**_

The knowledge instantly filling his head, Naruto performed a hand sign and grabbed Hikari's hand, muttering, **"Oni-Shunshin no Jutsu (Demonic Body Flicker Technique)"**

Naruto instantly appeared in front of Neji; who was 5 metres away from hitting Hinata. Immediately, Naruto placed his taut fist in front of Neji's solar-plexus, while Hikari held him back by the waist. **"Did you know?" **Naruto asked, his voice having reverted to a chilling representation of bloodlust. **"The only ones who should kill… Are those ready to **_**be**_** killed…"**

Naruto's words stopped Neji right in his tracks, and Hinata collapsed due to exhaustion. Naruto could tell from the sheer fact that she'd received a Jūken to the heart; she was likely close to death. One second later, Kakashi, Gai and the proctor reached Neji and helped restrain him. Naruto quickly ran towards Hinata, "Hinata! Are you alright?"

"Naruto-kun…" Hinata murmured. "Was I… Was I able to change a little…?" Her eyelids began to droop, and they soon closed.

"I've never seen a better job done by anyone, save for Lee," Naruto replied quietly.

"Hey, dropout. Let me tell you two things… If you're a shinobi, stop cheering for a stranger. A dropout is a dropout… They can't change!" Neji goaded.

Naruto slowly stood up, wearing an eerie smile on his face. He turned to face Neji, and Gai's eyes widened when he saw that his eyes were now crimson with slits for pupils. "**Do you want to try?**" Naruto gave Neji a feral grin.

"Hmph." Neji condescendingly smirked.

Naruto's grin only widened, and he rushed towards Neji at speeds never before seen. In less than a second, he was behind Neji with a kunai held towards his neck. "If a dropout just put you into a compromising situation… What does that make you?"

Neji gritted his teeth, and attempted to hit Naruto with a Jūken strike towards a tenketsu on his leg; only for his attack to be blocked by a small bout of crimson chakra.

"Don't fight with fire, Neji…" Naruto laughed. "You might get burnt."

With that, Naruto returned to his place, and watched the next match-up. _"God… I hope I get an easy opponent… Why's my stomach killing me…?"_

"_**Let's just put it this way: you have 3 minutes to calm down before you get consumed by bloodlust."**_

Naruto watched as the screen changed to display his name, and that of Inuzuka Kiba. Naruto rolled his eyes and walked back to the stage. "Well, dobe, are you ready to be beaten?" Kiba arrogantly asked.

"You know…" Naruto sighed. "Usually I'd drag this out, but my stomach's killing me. You honestly aren't worth my time, and if this continues for more than one minute, one of us will die."

Everybody present stared at Naruto, their brains processing the statement. One of the genin from Suna, named Gaara, was staring at Naruto in interest.

"As if you could kill me!" Kiba laughed.

"Start!" The proctor suddenly said.

Naruto and Kiba launched towards each other, and Naruto grinned when he twisted out of the way of Kiba's punch and grabbed Kiba's dog, Akamaru, from the ground. Naruto quickly took out a kunai and held it to Akamaru's neck. "Alright. Yield or he dies."

Kiba gritted his teeth. _'How could the dobe beat me?!'_ "Fine. Proctor, I yield!"

"The winner is, Uzumaki Naruto!" The proctor announced. Naruto quickly placed Kiba down and rushed out of the tower.

"_What… It still hurts…" Naruto groaned._

"_**I guess there's only one thing you can do," **__Hitomi sighed._

"_Which is?" Naruto winced._

"_**Leave Konoha," **__Hitomi casually replied._

To Be Continued.

* * *

_**Edit: 9/18/09 - I changed a part of this chapter. Hikari is no longer a hanyo, and she could not be turned into one for a reason which will be stated in Ch.21 (Released today). If you find any other chapters referring to Hikari as a hanyo or half-demon, let me know. Thanks.**_

* * *

**See what I mean? The fight with Kiba was so utterly disappointing. But then again: You either fight a short battle, or you kill everybody there. Hmmm, I wonder what to do *rolls eyes***

**Yup... Alright, Next chapter: "Leave Konoha". What will Naruto do?! (No; you have to ask: How will Hikari react? I know she'll kick his ass. Girls have a habit of doing that...)**

**Eagerly awaiting your flames,**

**T.D. Sugoi**

**- Laterz ;D  
**


	10. Mizukage

**Hmm... something seems off with his chapter, but I have no clue in hell as to what's wrong with it. So yeah, it's up to you, the loyal reader, to figure out. Essentially, I decided this is the chapter where Naruto grows balls. (Not regular balls; not balls of steel, but balls of _diamond_!)**

**Huh, that sounds painful.**

**Anyways, enjoy. Word's being a bitch. (To those of you that can help: Basically, I can't click [left/right] in the text area, but I can in the menu areas. Word '07; office '07 Pro)**

**Mmk, Enjoy. (What was it I was going to ask...?)  
**

_

* * *

_

_---Last Time---_

"_What… It still hurts…" Naruto groaned._

"_**I guess there's only one thing you can do," **__Hitomi sighed._

"_Which is?" Naruto winced._

"_**Leave Konoha," **__Hitomi casually replied._

_---Now…---_

Naruto's eyes nearly bugged out of his head. _"Leave Konoha?!"_

_**"Well…" **__Hitomi pretended to think. __**"You could always turn into a massive 4-tailed Kitsune… Except I'm pretty sure they wouldn't take kindly to that."**_

_"No shit," _Naruto snorted. _"Alright, where do I go, how long do I have?" _Naruto asked while he jumped towards the gate at unrivalled speeds. As soon as he reached the gate; he condensed nearly 15% of his chakra and used it to propel him far over the gate. Naturally, the gatekeeper was tired of his job by then, and he was simply filing his nails. As soon as he was a safe distance outside of Konoha, he could feel his bloodlust increase, and Naruto massaged his temples.

_**"Hmm… Maybe the Kitsune clan will take you in…" **__Hitomi mused. __**"How 'ultimate' is my reign…?"**_

_"Uh…"_

_**"Ah, whatever. Near the border between the ocean of Mizu no Kuni and Hi no Kuni, there should be a Kitsune den," **__Hitomi explained. __**"Just get close to the border and let me do the rest."**_

Naruto shrugged and began to leap southeast. _"I don't think I'll make it before the bloodlust settles…"_

_**"Well…" **__Hitomi sighed. __**"I **_**almost**_** want to blame you… Alright, use this…"**_

Naruto felt two tails of pure crimson chakra grow out of his waist, and he smirked. In the interval between the time it took for him to land from his current leap, and the time it took to make the next one; Naruto began to focus excess demonic chakra into his feet. Naruto grinned as his leaps became longer and he made record time.

Hikari sighed as she looked at the next set of matches, and the door. Naruto had left without saying anything. She shrugged as she looked at the billboard again. 'Rock Lee vs. Uzumaki Hikari'

Lee gave Hikari thumbs up when she jumped down to the arena, and he proclaimed, "Yosh! Let our flames of youth burn brightly; Uzumaki-san!"

Hikari nodded in response. The two of them waited calmly for the proctor to signal the beginning of the match. As soon as he signalled it, Lee ran towards Hikari with his right arm in front, and his left arm trailing behind. Once he was within 4 metres of Hikari, he jumped into the air and performed a move reminiscent of a jumping back-hook, and yelled "Konoha Senpū!"

Hikari simply moved back, and used her arm to continue pushing the kick towards where she should have been. In the second between Lee landing, and his leg returning to its original position, she quickly sent a roundhouse to his chest; which successfully hit, sending Lee flying back. Lee performed a flip midair to reduce the backlash, and successfully landed onto his feet. The two of them remained at a stalemate for a moment.

Lee carefully regarded Hikari, and at a second's notice, the two of them ran towards each other. Lee quickly threw another kick, which Hikari successfully blocked and countered by throwing a punch to his head; which he blocked. Lee then proceeded to throw a roundhouse while jumping in the air. As soon as she blocked it, he shifted his weight so that his other leg went up, into a back-hook. Hikari dodged the kick and pushed Lee forwards.

_'Hmm… to use ninjutsu, or not…' _Hikari mused. Her musing was cut short as Lee managed to throw a sidekick dangerously close to her head. Hikari moved her head out of the way, only to be met by Lee's other leg attempting another roundhouse. Hikari quickly moved out of the way, and frowned. "I hope you don't hold it against me if I use ninjutsu, Lee."

"Not at all, Uzumaki-san," Lee replied, as he threw a sweeping kick aimed to hit her in the shin.

Hikari jumped back, and threw several kunai towards Lee; which he blocked. She then began a fierce barrage on Lee, forcing him to the wall. As soon as he was at the wall, Hikari jumped back and formed several hand-seals, before yelling, **"****Katon: Ryūka no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique)" **Immediately, flames began moving towards the kunai, along the invisible wire she had placed on the kunai which now surrounded Lee. She formed more hand-seals as the flame was approaching Lee, and yelled, **"Fūton: Kami Oroshi! (Wind Release: Godly Wind from the Mountains)"**

The fire picked up speed and intensity, nearly at Lee's position. Lee quickly looked to Gai, who nodded. Lee then proceeded to hurriedly take off his leg warmers, and in a burst of speed, he moved towards Hikari.

_'Well, this has gotten tougher…'_ Hikari grinned. To everybody's eyes, Lee was a blur, but to her… She quickly ducked and threw a punch to what seemed like air. Imagine the surprise of the audience when Lee went flying back into the wall again.

Lee immediately picked himself up, and got into his stance. Meanwhile, Hikari formed a seal, and one clone popped into existence beside her. Hikari nodded to the clone, and the two of them quickly began forming seals.

Soon, the two finished, and yelled, **"Daidoro Futa no Jutsu! (Great Mud Enveloping Technique)"**

Not a moment too soon, pillars of earth began to grow out of the ground, before softening into mud and falling on the ground. By this time, Lee had unwrapped the bandages around his hands and wrists, and began to quickly move in circles around Hikari, barely being slowed down by the mud. Suddenly, he broke the cycle by throwing a fast kick to Hikari's chin and sending her flying into the air. Her eyes widened in shock as she realized what Lee was about to do.

He then used his hands to propel him off of the ground and kicked Hikari in her stomach, causing her to go even higher in the air. As they went up, he continued kicking her, capitalizing on her shock. _'Crap, crap, crap… What was I supposed to do…?'_

While Hikari kept on badgering her brain for answers, Lee wrapped his bandages around Hikari, making it nearly impossible for her to escape as they reached the apex of their flight. When the two of them began to descend, Lee used the momentum to spin around in circles; causing their descent to speed up. As they were about to hit the ground, Hikari grinned when a realization came to her.

Naruto frowned as he neared the large ocean which separated Hi no Kuni from Mizu no Kuni. _"I don't see any Kitsune…"_

_**"Huh. Guess they moved," **__Hitomi shrugged. __**"No, wait… How did you **_**not**_** notice that 8-tailed Kitsune over there?"**_

Naruto looked slightly to his right to see that there was indeed an 8-tailed Kitsune… Approaching a chestnut-haired woman… _"Wow, how did I _not _notice that?"_

_**"Hmm… He looks familiar…" **__Hitomi paused for a moment. __**"Right... he's that traitor who should've died… Let's go pay Jinui a visit, shall we?"**_

Naruto shrugged and jumped down from the branch he was waiting on, in front of the woman. Jinui turned his head towards Naruto, and began to laugh. "_Another_ human? I won't be able to eat another bite after this!" He laughed

"Jinui... You dare show your face after what happened?" Naruto scoffed. "Leave now, or face the consequences."

The massive fox threw its head back and laughed; scaring the woman who was hiding behind him. Naruto offhandedly wondered if she was still conscious. "What could a puny human like you do to me?"

Naruto grinned, "I'm not a puny human." _"In addition; I have no clue how the hell I can stop you..."_

Hikari's eyes darted to the clone which Lee had seen fit to leave alone. She quickly performed a seal-less substitution, thankful that she'd decided to master that particular jutsu. Hikari watched as Lee and her clone hit the ground; exploding in a puff of smoke and mud. Hikari took a kunai out of her pouch and held it to Lee's neck while he was still recovering. "Yield," She commanded.

Lee frowned for a moment, before looking up at Gai, who nodded. "Proctor, I yield."

"The winner is Uzumaki Hikari!" The proctor exclaimed. Hikari just sighed and lethargically jumped back to where she had been standing before the match.

_"How am I expected to kick the ass of a humungous 8-tailed Kitsune...?" _Naruto asked.

_**"Well, let's put it this way... Get the girl the hell away from here before shit hits the fan..." **__Hitomi vaguely replied._

Naruto looked behind him, "Could you leave?"

"Why should I?" She asked, enraged.

"Let's put it this way..." Naruto's eyes turned crimson, "It might be smart if you leave."

"I won't."

"Well then... don't blame me," Naruto shrugged. _"Let me guess... bloodlust?"_

_**"Thank you, Kami! I'm so glad I got a smart container!" **__Hitomi rolled her eyes. __**"Is there any other way you could beat him?"**_

Naruto was about to reply, when he noticed that the fox was moving closer to him. Yet, for some reason, Naruto didn't feel scared. He almost felt... alive?

"Well..." The Kitsune laughed. "Say good bye to your life!"

Naruto stared up at the Kitsune, and he licked his lips. **"Say goodbye to **_**yours**_**..." **He retorted, his voice having shifted from its normal state into its demonic state. At the same time, the illusion used to hide his true heritage was becoming undone, and he soon had 4 tails of pure chakra behind him; in addition to the ears on his head.

Jinui **(The Kitsune) **grinned, and he rushed towards Naruto at breakneck speed. Naruto responded with a feral grin as he rushed towards Jinui. A crimson light obscured the area, and all that could be seen of Jinui was a disintegrating limb. _"Thank you, _so_ much..."_

_**"Can't have you dying yet," **__Hitomi sighed._

Naruto looked behind him, remembering the woman who'd been cornered by Jinui at first. "Are you alright?" He asked, as he turned around. Naruto blinked suddenly. He hadn't had the time to get a good look at her, but he was sure that she'd been a heartbreaker wherever she was from. She had long, chestnut brown hair which went down to her waist, as well as entrancing sapphire eyes which seemed to bore through him. She was wearing a blue, one-piece set which started just below her shoulders, and ended at mid-shin height. There was a slit in the right side in order to allow better movement, and she also seemed to be wearing black pants which ended as mesh.

"I'm fine..." She replied casually. "How'd you beat that thing?"

"Don't worry about it, Nee-chan!" Naruto grinned. "It was pretty tough... I doubt even Sandaime-Jiji could beat that!"

"You mean the Sandaime Hokage?" She asked. The woman tried to get up, but she was stopped by an immense pain in her leg.

Naruto frowned, "Are you alright, um..."

"I'm Sugimura Hoshimi," She supplied. "You wouldn't happen to know the way to Konohagakure?"

"Well..." Naruto paused. "I know the way, but you're in no condition to travel..."

"Don't worry about me," She waved her hand dismissively.

"Hmm..." Naruto looked at her injured leg for a moment. "I'm pretty sure that's a chakra burn."

"So?"

"Well, Hoshimi-nee..." Naruto grinned, having assumed the nickname as if he'd called her that for ages. "Kitsune have poisonous chakra."

"I'll live," Hoshimi rolled her eyes. "Don't look down on me just because I'm a girl!"

"Actually..." Naruto paused for a moment. "I look up to girls - but that's not the point. You need medical attention."

"I suppose you'd know where I could get that?" She scoffed. "Who are you anyways?"

"Uzumaki Naruto," Naruto quietly replied. _"So... How do you attack demonic chakra without attacking the person...?"_

_**"Well... You can use my yoki; considering it's stronger it should neutralize the effect of Jinui's power."**_

Naruto startled her by walking up to her, and he placed his hand on her leg. Just as she was about to beat him into tomorrow for being a pervert; strange red chakra began to flow out of his hands and onto her leg, where the burn was located. "What the...?"

"Hey, you live as long as I do, you pick up a few things," Naruto winked once he'd fixed her injury. "So, you needed to go to Konoha?"

"Yeah, could you take me there, Naruto?" Hoshimi asked.

"Well..." Naruto frowned thoughtfully. _"So much for running away..."_

_**"Oh well, you'll live."**_

"I guess so," Naruto shrugged. "Can you walk?"

Hoshimi winced as she tried to get up, to no avail. "I guess not..."

"Do you want me to carry you, Nee-san?" Naruto asked patiently.

"Fine," She sullenly replied. "If your hand goes anywhere it shouldn't, I'll castrate you."

_'I wonder if that's possible...'_ Naruto mused as he carefully picked her up and made it so that her arms were folded across his neck, and his hands held her calves in place. "Alright, get ready for a bumpy ride."

Hoshimi was about to retort, when Naruto gathered demonic chakra into his foot and jumped back towards Konoha. The world seemed to rush by in an amazing burst of speed, and it was only her shinobi training that kept her from screaming.

Hikari looked at the next match-up in disappointment. Chouji vs. Gaara. "You can't win," Hikari spoke up, as Chouji prepared to go down.

"Don't underestimate me!" He cried.

"You _can't_ win," Hikari reaffirmed. "The only genin who'd willingly fight and win... isn't in this room."

"I'll fight for the barbecue!" Chouji cried, small flames becoming prevalent within his eyes.

"Gaara will kill you. He's done it to many people before, and he will do it again."

Chouji visibly gulped, and he looked back at Ino, who was shaken by the statement. "C-come on, C-Chouji. Show her you can win!"

"You don't sound convinced," Shikamaru pointed out.

"Hurry up!" Gaara yelled impatiently from the stadium. Chouji slowly turned around, to see Gaara's bloodthirsty expression.

"Proctor, I forfeit!" Chouji cried.

"Due to forfeit, the winner is Sabaku no Gaara!" The proctor stated with a sigh.

The rest of the exam passed in a blur, and Hikari sighed as she walked towards the gates, deciding to take a stroll. She blinked when she saw Naruto literally fly over her head, with a girl on his back. "He better have a good reason for that..." She murmured.

Naruto gasped for breath as he finally landed outside of the Hokage tower and collapsed, receiving dirty looks from some. "Alright, let's... go," He panted.

Hoshimi raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure? That _was_ awfully fast..."

"I'll live," Naruto replied. He let her off gently and led the way to the Hokage's office. "Is Jiji in?" Naruto asked his secretary. Her reply was a dirty look.

"Of course I'm in," Sarutobi laughed from behind Naruto. "So, what do you need?"

"Well, Nee-chan says she needs to speak to you," Naruto replied, pointing to Hoshimi. Sarutobi regarded her carefully for a moment, before nodding.

"Alright, follow me," He stated. Naruto and Hoshimi followed Sarutobi into his office, where he sat in his chair. "So, Mizukage-dono. What brings you to Konoha?"

Naruto's mouth fell agape, and Hoshimi allowed herself a small smile before replying. "I think that Kirigakure and Konohagakure have been warring nations for far too long. I would like to create a peace treaty with Konoha."

"I see..." Sarutobi frowned for a moment. "Weren't you supposed to arrive tomorrow?"

"Well, we ran into some difficulties," Hoshimi begrudgingly replied. "We were attacked by a giant Kitsune, and my escort was killed. I would've died too, had it not been for Naruto."

Sarutobi looked at Naruto thoughtfully. "How many tails did it have?"

"Eight," Naruto replied.

"If the Mizukage had trouble... How did you manage it?" Sarutobi asked.

"I have my secrets, Jiji," Naruto replied calmly. "Just as I'm sure you do. Which reminds me...? I'm sure you have something _very_ important to tell me..."

Sarutobi gulped audibly. "Well, Naruto... As the Hokage, it's my responsibility..."

"Let's not do this _now_," Naruto murmured. "I don't think it would be wise to keep Nee-chan waiting."

"Nee-chan?" Hoshimi raised an eyebrow.

"Well... Mizukage-dono is a mouthful," Naruto admitted. "I don't like respectful titles. Either way, I've overstayed my welcome..." Naruto grinned. "Enjoy the paperwork, Jiji."

Sarutobi groaned as Naruto walked out, and Naruto stepped out of the Hokage tower; only to be met by Hikari. "Uh..."

"Where were you?" Hikari asked.

"I was... fighting a giant Kitsune?" Naruto answered truthfully.

"The sad part is I can't even tell if you're lying..." Hikari pouted. "Who was that girl with you?"

"The Mizukage," Naruto replied. "Apparently, she wants to sign a treaty with Konoha."

"If you're lying..." Hikari gained a sadistic glint in her eyes. "It won't be pleasant..."

_'I still wonder if I can be permanently castrated...'_ Naruto mused. "Nothing is..."

"Yes, well... Since you ran out of the arena as soon as you were done, you might want to know that you're fighting Neji in the finals," Hikari sighed.

"Awesome!" Naruto exclaimed with a sadistic grin."Now to celebrate... Let's go to the onsen! (Hot springs)"

"...Why?"

"Ero-sennin," Naruto replied. "I need training."

"Go find that massive Kitsune," Hikari rolled her eyes.

"It's dead..." Naruto replied.

Hikari blinked and looked towards Naruto, who sagely nodded. She sighed and they went towards the onsen; Naruto preparing to yell the word 'pervert', while Hikari was preparing to hurt the man.

Sure enough, when Naruto stepped into the male section of the onsen, he saw Jiraiya giggling perversely and looking through a hole in between the fences. For a moment, Naruto considered joining him. Suddenly, he felt a very _painful_ sensation in his nether regions, and decided against it. _"Nobody lets me have any fun..."_

"Hey, Ero-sennin. Train me," Naruto demanded, as he poked Jiraiya.

"Go away, gaki. I'm researching," Jiraiya grunted dismissively.

"Don't you want to train me so that I don't go out of control, and kill all of Konoha?" Naruto grinned, as Jiraiya spun around and prepared to beat up Naruto - until he realized it was hypothetical.

"You drive a hard bargain, brat..." Jiraiya groaned. "Alright, the great Jiraiya will train you!"

"Hooray..." Naruto pretended to cheer.

"Hey, be appreciative!" Jiraiya scowled. "It's not everyday you get trained by somebody as awesome as me!"

"If you say so... Kakashi-sensei is awesome in his own right. Anyways... would you be willing to train my friend as well?" Naruto asked.

"Is she a hot girl?" Jiraiya asked; looking back towards the female side of the onsen.

"She's taken," Naruto stated.

Jiraiya allowed himself a small smirk. _'Just like Minato whenever I mentioned Kushina.' _"Alright, gaki. I'll teach the two of you how to summon toads!"

"Huh..." Naruto murmured. "Is there a Kitsune summoning contract?"

Jiraiya gasped in fake-shock. "You would deny the awesomeness of toads?!"

"The way I see it... There's already a Gama-sennin... Yet, there's no Kitsune-sennin," Naruto explained. "Nah, just kidding. There's no Kitsune contract... Hmm, I should make one."

"Anyways..." Jiraiya interrupted Naruto's musing, "I'm sure you'll enjoy learning how to summon toads, considering they're the strongest summons in the known world."

Naruto nodded thoughtfully. "That sounds like a good skill."

"It is," Jiraiya agreed. "Hey, you don't mind pointing out your girlfriend?"

"She's the one with -" Naruto paused mid-sentence. "Hell, no. She'll kill both of us."

"You're no fun..." Jiraiya muttered. Naruto grinned, and in one movement, he threw Jiraiya into the female's section of the onsen.

"PERVERT!" They called in unison, and Naruto shuddered as he heard Jiraiya's tortured screams.

_"Maybe I shouldn't have..."_ Naruto frowned. He was about to continue his train of thought, but as he turned around; he was met with the face of an ANBU. Naruto blinked.

"Uzumaki-san, the Hokage requires your presence," The ANBU said. Naruto slowly nodded, and he quickly changed and made his way towards the Hokage tower; forgetting all about Jiraiya. Luckily for Jiraiya; one of the ANBU intercepted him, and gave him the same message which Naruto had been given.

"You needed me?" Naruto asked, once he'd walked into Sarutobi's room.

"Yes, the village council wishes to speak with you," Sarutobi nodded regrettably.

"Where's Nee-chan?" Naruto asked. He might've been a mere genin, but even he knew that treaties took time to sign.

"She's also there, as she is a part of the meeting," Sarutobi sighed, and led Naruto towards the large double-doors which Sarutobi had dubbed 'The Gateway to Hell'. Sarutobi sighed as he threw open the doors, and revealed the council to Naruto.

Naruto quietly walked in, and sighed as he stood in the center of the room. He looked around for any familiar faces, finding none save for Jiraiya, Sarutobi and Hoshimi. Finally, one of the council members spoke up.

"Uzumaki Naruto, you have been brought here due to a law that has been enacted regarding you."

"This is where the shit hits the fan..." Jiraiya murmured under his breath.

"What's this law?" Naruto asked.

"The Clan Restoration Act," The council member replied. "You, the sole child of Namikaze Minato and Uzumaki Kushina have a duty towards Konoha."

"I have a duty towards Konoha," Naruto unconvincingly repeated.

"Yes. Three months after the chunin exam, you _will_ wed, and we expect offspring one year after the wedding," Haruno demanded haughtily.

Naruto paused, and his lips twitched. Jiraiya looked on in horror, and prayed to god that _he_ didn't hit the fan. "Hmm... I think not."

"You can't break a law, that's treason!" Homura cried.

Meanwhile, Hoshimi was watching; her interest having peaked once she'd heard that Naruto was the son of the 'Yellow Flash', and one of the Uzumaki clan.

"Well..." Naruto calmly replied. "I believe that there's a difference between treason, and self-preservation... After all, the demon brat _had_ to pick something off of the streets."

"Yup, they're screwed," Jiraiya commented. Sarutobi turned towards Jiraiya; his hand twitching towards the weapon pouch he kept on his person.

"Furthermore..." Naruto paused. "What's the worst you can do to me for breaking a law?"

"We can execute you," Haruno pointed out.

"Oh..." Naruto licked his lips, "I don't think you'd want to do that... You see, the Yondaime... no, Father was a genius. Do you want to know what I've learnt about my seal?"

"Seal?" Hoshimi murmured questioningly.

_"Now for the fun..." _"You see... if I die, the Kyuubi will be released." All of the council members visibly paled upon this statement. "In addition... I can release the Kyuubi of my own volition, so you can't imprison me. Lastly..." Naruto winced in remembrance. "We had a failsafe in the case that anybody ever decided to try using me for breeding. My reproductive system is... different."

"You make it sound as if you've talked to the most dangerous demon humans have ever seen," Sarutobi commented.

"Oh, I've done more than talk to her..." Naruto grinned, "Either way, I hold all the cards in this situation. There is no foreseeable way you can force me into this. So, do you still want this law to apply to me?"

"You have four months to marry somebody," Haruno stated again, completely ignorant of what Naruto just said.

"Very well..." Naruto licked his lips in anticipation. "I hope you're not _too_ disappointed when you find that I'm still single."

With that, Naruto nonchalantly sat down beside Jiraiya, in a seat which was technically reserved for Tsunade, the legendary medic.

The council members began spluttering in outrage; save for those who'd voted against the motion. "This is treason!"

"I swear to god..." Naruto muttered.

"You get used to them," Jiraiya reassuringly replied. "So, do you intend to take on his name?"

"Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto?" Naruto paused for a moment. "Yeah, that seems pretty cool... Save for the fact that I'll have Iwa after my head."

"Well, let's put it this way... Konoha's already after your head, what can one more village do?" Jiraiya joked.

"A hell of a lot more," Naruto muttered.

Once the council had finished their bickering, Hoshimi stood up, and proclaimed, "Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto is under the protection of the Godaime Mizukage of Kirigakure no Sato."

The council immediately began bickering _again_, and Hoshimi sent a small wink towards Naruto. Naruto looked at Jiraiya and asked, "What does _that_ entail?"

"Well... Basically, it means that the Mizukage owes you a debt of life..." Jiraiya paused thoughtfully. "Essentially, if you're killed, Kirigakure will go to war with the village which caused your death. Or in the case of unlinked assassinations, she'll take care of the assassin herself," Jiraiya explained.

"Huh," Naruto intelligently replied. "I guess karma isn't _that_ much of a bitch..."

"Believe it!" Jiraiya yelled, and everybody turned their heads towards Jiraiya. Jiraiya cleared his throat and sat down, while Naruto nearly broke down and laughed his ass off.

To Be Continued.

* * *

**Now then... Naruto's not emotional enough? He's lived by repressing his emotions. Hell, we can get to the crying later. But look at what he says to the council members. It's 'I won't take your crap, bitches'. It implies (in my opinion) that he's uber pissed off and etc.**

**So yeah, saved the Mizukage's life? Interesting...**

**Soo.... What's wrong with it? Nothing? Something? Is it fixable? Mmk, I'll let you figure that out.**

**Oh, hey Darkfire: thank knightbishop; I'll see if there's any opportunities later on.**

**Yeah... Laterz.**

**(This chapter was released late b/c my mom had hw and she hogged the comp.) - She's not uneducated, she's simply taking extra courses... "What is this, the 13th extra course you've taken, Mom?"**

**- Laterz ;)**

**(FKyuuxNaru FTW! Somebody give me some good stories that have the FKyuu/Naru pairing. Kthxbai)  
**


	11. The Month Before

**(Insert writing that nobody reads)**

**So, yeah. It's late, it's shorter than usual, but I don't care. This chapter basically started out as a training chapter... then degenerated into a fluff/filler... Then degenerated into a crack-fueled chapter. Literally. Either way, it starts at the Hayate vs. That Jounin from Suna; ends at the announcement of Naruto vs. "that pompous Hyuuga bastard who's apparently a dynamic character" Aren't my "nicknames" for them epic win?**

**Basically, I had to cut out a lot of the stuff that would usually happen, because it assumes that we care. We don't care about what happens to Lee when he's not in the hospital from a fight that's not with Gaara. (Well, I don't). We don't care what happens with Sasuke when he's training with somebody that's not Kakashi (again, I don't). Lastly... We don't care who Hikari trains with because... Do you honestly think she needs training? _I _don't, lol.**

**Anyways... Don't be disappointed, etc, etc, give me suggestions, etc, etc...**

**Riight, I also stopped writing my R+V fics, mostly because I lost "the plot". "The Plot" (same importance as "The Force") is no longer with me, therefore I could not do anything with that.**

**BTW: For the crack sections, I got ideas from the various Naruto fics I enjoyed/laughed at. I still don't think I got _enough_ of those, but meh. That's not my problem anymore.**

**"Hey dickless, hurry up and start the chapter!" Sai yelled.**

**I stared at Sai for a moment, then shrugged. "Ossu!" *carves a cursed seal into Sai's arm when nobody's looking*  
**

* * *

"Dance of the Crescent Moon!" Hayate yelled, as he leaped towards the Jounin from Suna. As he leapt, after images were left trailing behind him. As quickly as they appeared, they disappeared and left Hayate airborne above the Jounin.

The Jounin quickly braced himself, and the sword embedded itself in his shoulder. Hayate tried to pull it out, to no avail. "That move was the Konoha Style Dance of the Crescent Moon..." The Jounin mused. "You can use it at such a young age... this village sure has talented people. Your sword technique was excellent," He complimented as he placed his hand upon the blade. "But it's natural for material blades to be stopped... Sadly, a blade of wind can't be stopped as easily."

The Jounin lifted his free hand up, and quickly moved it towards Hayate. In a puff of smoke, Hayate transformed into a smirking Naruto, who'd grabbed the Jounin's hand. "Too bad you were left with me... Especially since I have wind chakra."

The Jounin's eyes widened, and before he could even react, Naruto had changed the wind chakra in his hand into demonic fire chakra. The screams of the Suna Jounin could be heard as he convulsed while the water in his blood was boiled.

"Thanks," Hayate thanked Naruto. "Why were you out so late, though?"

"Well..." Naruto rubbed his head in embarrassment. "I couldn't sleep, so I just decided to take a walk. By the way, shouldn't you get the invasion plans to the Hokage?"

_---The Next Day---_

Naruto was stealthily moving through the training grounds, seeing how many of them he could pass through without getting caught. By the time he'd reached Training Ground 5; he heard the unmistakeable sound of a fire jutsu. Naruto peered from behind a tree to see Sasuke forming seals and yelling, **"Katon: Gōkakyu no Jutsu!"**

Naruto curiously watched as the last Uchiha worked his way to exhaustion and beyond; refusing to give up. "So he _can_ work hard..." Naruto muttered. "Too bad he's a prick."

_**"Not like you can change that," **__Hitomi sarcastically snorted.__**"I mean, it's not as if he's trying to kill somebody because he's too stupid to ask **_**why**_** that person killed his family."**_

_"No, really?" _Naruto sarcastically replied. He rolled his eyes and continued all the way to training ground 43; foregoing the pointless stealth training for obviously needed combat training. Naruto grinned in uncontained anticipation, and formed a quick hand seal. **"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"**

Immediately, 40 perfect doppelgangers of Naruto came into existence. "Alright, come at me with all you've got!" Naruto yelled

With a battle cry, all of his clones rushed at him, and Naruto stared at the oncoming mass of clones. As soon as they were nearly upon him, Naruto took out a kunai and began to ferociously attack them. _"Opening by the ribs, slow reaction...." _Naruto quickly took stock of all of the errors in the stances of his clones, and worked to correct them.

Soon, all of his clones had disappeared, and Naruto was left a little worse for the wear. His cheek had gotten a purple bruise which would heal quickly, but still proved that he needed to be able to guard both his abdomen and head.

Naruto got back onto his feet, and called two clones into existence. "Ninjutsu," Naruto commanded.

The clones nodded, and the training ground was soon full of fire, wind and lightning strikes. Naturally, since there was no taijutsu involved, this limited the attacks to medium-range and long-range attacks. Naruto was about to unleash a particularly devastating attack when he felt somebody watching him. Naruto jumped over one of the attacks and looked behind him, to see... nobody.

Naruto shrugged, knowing that if it was an assassin; he'd be dead by now. Quickly dodging a projectile made out of fire and fuelled by wind, Naruto took out a kunai and grinned. Almost immediately, the clones gulped; knowing that the attack wasn't going to be good.

Naruto's grin only increased, and he quickly sharpened the kunai with his wind chakra. Yet, he continued to pour chakra into the kunai, until it began to crack. Next, Naruto began to pour lightning chakra into his kunai, and it soon exploded. When the shrapnel fell to the ground; Naruto was left holding a projectile made purely out of electricity. Naruto let go of the kunai. Curiously, it stayed in the air, without falling. Naruto winked at the trembling clones, and quickly shouted, **"Kunai Kage Bunshin no Jutsu! (Kunai Shadow Clone Technique)"**

Immediately, the kunai split into two, and those two split into two again; continuing the process of what _would_ be labelled binary fission if it was an organism. Soon, there was a shield of 1024 kunai protecting Naruto. Naruto gave a particularly bloodthirsty smile, and he swept his hands dramatically towards the clones - which were now pissing in their boots.

The effect was immediate. The kunai flew threw the air at speeds which couldn't be followed by the eye, and immediately pierced the clones quite fiercely; resulting in an amazing explosion.

Naruto coughed violently, and looked at the spot where his clones had been, once the dust cleared. To his immense surprise, shock, and sadistic glee; there was a nothing left. Save for a massive crater. Naruto was struck speechless for a moment, before his lips twisted upwards into a smirk. "I'm badass."

"I don't know about that," Naruto heard somebody say from behind him. Naruto whirled around to see Jiraiya emerging from the trees. "That was a pretty interesting use of elemental chakra though. How'd you get the idea?"

"Well, I read up on wind chakra once, and it said that you can sharpen kunai with it. I decided to apply that property with lightning, but it didn't work the first time. Instead, the kunai just shocked me," Naruto explained. "So, I started thinking. After a while, I realized that the kunai was simply conducting, and it'd be _way_ more lethal if I _changed_ the kunai."

"You've still got the issue of getting shocked," Jiraiya pointed out.

"Yeah, I know. That's where the wind chakra comes in. If I pour in enough wind chakra that the kunai will break if I just add a _little_ more, that'll make it easier to create a kunai of pure chakra," Naruto grinned.

"Well..." Jiraiya paused for a moment. "That _is_ badass. Especially when you replicate the electrical kunai..."

"Yeah, I know," Naruto replied. His face was drenched with sweat after the amount of chakra it had taken to replicate the results of his first electrical kunai in milliseconds.

"The only issue..." Jiraiya paused thoughtfully. "It takes too long."

"Yeah..." Naruto paused. "I'd probably only use that technique if there's another Shinobi War... God knows it'll happen again."

"That's the problem with living in a 'peaceful' era..." Jiraiya rolled his eyes. "You're all the more unprepared for war."

"Not like it matters anyways," Naruto shrugged. "You'll die either way if you're one of those unlucky people."

"You're sounding an awful like that Hyuuga kid," Jiraiya pointed out. "Either way, I'm here to train you. Are you ready for some painful work?"

"As long as I don't have to 'research' anything," Naruto replied with a knowing grin.

"Bah! You brats don't understand what it means to be a super pervert!" Jiraiya scoffed.

"Thank god for that... Hikari would have my head on a pike if I _did_," Naruto rolled his eyes.

"That's the problem with commitment," Jiraiya sagely replied. "It always bites you in the ass later on."

"No..." Naruto replied, after the awkward pause had ended. "That's _you_. Are you going to train me or not?"

"Kids these days... always in a rush..." Jiraiya shook his head. "Either way, I hope you're ready to use up _tons_ of chakra."

"What am I gonna learn anyways?" Naruto asked.

"You're going to learn how to summon toads," Jiraiya replied. "You should feel honoured; the last person who learnt from me became the Hokage."

"Alright..." Naruto replied. "How do I summon?"

"Patience, gaki," Jiraiya replied. He made a couple seals before biting his finger and placing the bleeding hand on the ground. **"Kuchiyose no Jutsu! (Summoning Technique)"**

Immediately, a large cloud of smoke appeared, and when it faded; a large toad was left standing. The toad looked warily towards Jiraiya, then at Naruto, before finally opening its mouth and placing a scroll on the ground.

Jiraiya unrolled the scroll. "Alright, sign here," He pointed towards a line, "Make all your fingers bleed and make a handprint here," He pointed towards a space beside the line. "Then you're done!"

Naruto warily signed his name on the contract, and then proceeded to bite the five fingers on his right hand and place his palm on the designated space; leaving a bloody handprint behind. Jiraiya nodded to the toad, which took back the scroll and nodded; choosing to disappear in another puff of smoke.

"Alright, these are the seals," Jiraiya slowly formed 5 seals, allowing Naruto the time to memorize them.

Naruto mirrored the hand seals and bit his finger. After thrusting the hand with his bleeding finger upon the ground, Naruto yelled, **"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"**

After the original puff of smoke dissipated, a small tadpole appeared and flopped pitifully. Naruto stared at the tadpole in depressed resignation, until he took pity on it and dismissed it. Naruto glared at Jiraiya, who was laughing extremely hard. "It... A tadpole! Epic fail!" Jiraiya cackled

Naruto threw a kunai one inch away from Jiraiya's groin, and silenced him with a particularly vicious glare. "I missed on purpose."

"It's not _my_ fault you have no sense of humour," Jiraiya countered. "Either way, have fun training."

"What?" Naruto blinked. "You're not going to help me?"

"Do you _want_ me to help you?" Jiraiya asked. His only response was a shake of the head. "I'll be researching if you need me."

Naruto rolled his eyes and watched Jiraiya depart. Finally coming to a decision, Naruto performed the jutsu again, getting slightly better results this time. Naruto stared at a small toad which had a tail extending from its rear. Naruto sighed again and dispelled the toad. "Well... it's an improvement, right?"

Naruto continued practicing for the rest of the day, until he finally came to a briefly obvious realization. "This jutsu is about how much chakra I put into it... Therefore..."

Naruto was about to draw upon some of the yoki which his body had begun producing on its own, when he realized something. _"They don't know that I can use her yoki... It's too big a risk, therefore..."_

Naruto did the same thing with his own chakra, and this time managed to summon a toad which had legs, a tail, yet no arms. "That's..." Naruto sighed. _"Ah, screw it."_

Naruto channelled some of his demonic chakraand performed the summoning technique again. The result was enshrouded within a cloud of smoke; yet Naruto somehow knew he'd performed it pretty damn well.

**"Jiraiya? Why'd you summon me?" **The giant toad which Naruto was currently standing on asked.

"I'm the one who summoned you!" Naruto yelled in response.

**"A brat like you? As if!" **The toad scoffed. **"You need **_**lots**_** of chakra to summon the great toad boss, Gamabunta!"**

Naruto paused for a moment. "Yeah, well... I have more chakra than most."

"Damn it, Naruto! You summoned Gamabunta?!" Jiraiya screeched, appearing out of nowhere.

"What, I was supposed to summon something weaker? You never told me that, Ero-sennin!" Naruto accused.

**"Even if I believed you..." **Gamabunta paused for a moment. **"You call him Ero-sennin? That's hilarious! I'd let you summon us right here, but you have to prove yourself."**

"Screw it," Naruto sighed. "If I can stay on your back for the entire day, will you grant me the right to summon toads?"

Almost immediately, the toad began to move erratically, nearly making Naruto fall. Naruto simply used his chakra to glue his feet to Gamabunta's back for the rest of the day...

_---A Few Days Later---_

Naruto walked nonchalantly down the street, when he noticed a box of Pocky lying on the ground. Naruto blinked as he stared at it, and shrugged. He carefully picked it up and dusted it off. It was unopened! Naruto looked around cautiously, and quickly opened it, and ate one of the Pocky sticks.

It was delicious! He quickly shoved some more Pocky into his mouth, and he happily tied it to his leg in an imitation leg-holster.

If Naruto had chosen to look closer, he'd notice that the label said 'Enhanced with potent, long-lasting Nin-crack!'

_---Elsewhere---_

Itachi's eyes widened, and he quickly gripped his calve in fear. When he felt the reassuring shape of his Pocky box, he sighed. "Thank god..."

Kisame stared at Itachi for a moment. "You have issues."

"Naruto says I'm cool," Itachi stoically countered.

"Naruto...?"

_---A Few More Days Later---_

"Alright..." Naruto murmured as he walked down the road. "I have to fight some sort of prodigy who can see my tenketsu points... How could I manage that without showing my trump card...?" He pondered for a great amount of time. No matter how much he thought on it, he couldn't find any answers. Finally, he frowned. "Why do I feel as if my only hope is a lavender-haired Hyuuga pervert who would be in love with me if I wasn't taken?"

"Eek!" Naruto heard from behind him. He turned around slowly, and saw one lavender-haired Hyuuga pervert who would be in love with him if he wasn't taken. "Err... Hinata, is that you?"

"Y-yes, N-Naruto-kun," Hinata meekly replied; coming out from behind the tree.

"Oh," Naruto nodded. "Yeah, I thought so. Alright, see you!"

"B-bye, N-Naruto-kun," Hinata replied.

Naruto was about to walk away when he paused in realization. He quickly whirled around and startled Hinata. "Hinata! You're a lavender-haired Hyuuga pervert who'd be in love with me if I wasn't taken, right?!" Naruto yelled.

"Y-yes, N-Naruto-kun..." Hinata replied; blood rushing to her face.

"Hmm... Alright, then," Naruto nodded as if he'd realized something.

_**"You're retarded..." **__Hitomi yawned. __**"Ask her for help, genius."**_

Naruto blinked. "Hey, Hinata, do you want to help me out?"

"O-of c-course, N-N-Naruto-kun..." Hinata replied, poking her fingers together.

_"Hmm, wonder why she's so shy..." _"Could you Jūken me into oblivion?" Naruto asked; completely oblivious due to all the brain cells which died while he'd been "dealing" with Gamabunta.

"S-Sure, N-Naruto-kun!" Hinata managed a shy smile, before she fainted due to all the blood that was in her head. Any medic-nin who saw her after that would wonder why she seemed to have more blood in her head than should be physically possible.

_---A Few More Days Later---_

"I need to train..." Naruto sighed. "What should I do today...?"

"Hey Naruto, want to learn a new jutsu?" Jiraiya asked, popping out from nowhere.

"I'm busy," Naruto replied. "How should I train...?"

"I saw your girlfriend in the onsen!" Jiraiya exclaimed, abandoning any tact he had.

"Alright... Girlfriend in the onsen..." Naruto repeated.

_**'What the fuck is wrong with him?'**_

"Yeah!" Jiraiya casually replied. "Wanna peek?"

Naruto blinked. "Sure, I've got nothing better to do."

The two of them walked to the onsen. Anybody who watched them would frown in disappointment at Jiraiya's perverted grin, and Naruto's spaced-out expression. Jiraiya watched Naruto stumble into the female section of the onsen, and he chuckled. It was time to peek.

Naruto took of his clothes and casually opened the door and walked into the onsen. He looked at the women bathing happily and back at the word which said 'Female Section'. The women looked at him expectantly. Naruto finally shrugged, and went into the water; choosing to take off the towel covering his nether regions.

"Eek! Pervert!" One of the girls screamed. Jiraiya chuckled from the safety of the male's section. "What do you have to say for yourself?!"

Naruto stared at her. "Naruto's a good boy."

The women blinked. Naruto blinked. Finally, one of them spoke up. "Well, Itsuka's a _bad_ girl..."

Jiraiya watched in shock as she glomped him. In a tree placed conveniently above the onsen, a boy with a one-eyed mask watched the scene. "Alright, so _that's_ how to get the chicks... First, I will need a name... Madara? No, that's just retarded..."

The boy looked around for a moment. He finally noticed a scaffold, and his eyes soon went to his own erection. "To...bi... Tobi!" He grinned underneath the mask. "Tobi's a good boy!" **(Tobi = scaffold erector)**

_---A Few More Days Later---_

"Ah, crap... My head hurts..." Naruto groaned as he got out of bed.

_**'Should I tell him what he did...?' **_

"Want some water?" Hikari asked, holding a glass out for him. Naruto nodded and completely disregarded the fact that it was yellow; downing it in one go. _'Well, good thing that I used food coloring,' _Hikari thought with a small smile.

"What've I been doing...?" Naruto asked nobody in particular. "The last thing I remember was... that box of Pocky..."

Suddenly, a horrified expression appeared on Naruto's face he grabbed his calve and sighed in relief when he felt the familiar shape of his Pocky box. He quickly ate another stick, and collapsed in pure ecstasy. Amusingly, the box listed one of the main ingredients as ecstasy.

"That was weird..." Hikari commented.

"Itachi says I'm awesome," Naruto stoically replied; suddenly awake again. He managed to stay upright for another 4 seconds before ultimately collapsing.

"..." Hikari stared at him. "What was that?"

"Damn him..." Jiraiya glared at Naruto from a nearby roof. "Well, at least I have enough research for another book..."

Jiraiya's eyes bugged out of his head when Hikari decided to change. Her shirt was _nearly_ off, when she realized the window was open, and went to close it. "Damn it!" Jiraiya yelled. He quickly formed a hand seal. **"****Tōton Jutsu (Transparent Escape Technique)"**

Jiraiya's visage faded away; leaving Sarutobi to gaze in visible scorn. "I need that jutsu..." Sarutobi glared.

_---A Few Days Later---_

"So... It's finally today," Naruto sighed.

"Yeah..." Jiraiya agreed.

"It's time... To own the Chunin exams!" Hikari yelled. Naruto and Jiraiya stared at her. "What? It is..."

"Of course it is, Tsundere-chan," Jiraiya replied. Naruto barely managed to stop Hikari from killing Jiraiya.

"Let's go... Neji's not going to kick his own ass," Naruto sighed.

_"I fail at life!" Neji cried, as he continuously punched himself in the head. "Fate deems me unworthy!" He stabbed a kunai into his arm. "The Jūken is crap compared to Uzumaki-sama!" He hit himself with a nose-aimed Jūken_ strike.

"No matter how epic that'd be..." Naruto sighed again.

"Alright, we're going ahead!" Hikari called as she and Jiraiya jogged towards the stadium. Naruto blinked.

"That was fast," He rolled his eyes. "Alright, now to waste time 'till I can make my epic Namikaze style entrance."

_**'Since when did you accept him as your father...?'**_

"I wonder why I took up the name," Naruto mused. "Oh, right... I might as well accept he's my dead father. I mean, it's not like I'm bitter because he sealed a demon into me and condemned me to a life of loneliness..."

_Hitomi blinked._

"Of course, if he were still alive..." Naruto sadistically grinned.

_---5 Minutes of Pointless Banter Later---_

"Well..." Naruto grinned," I should be late enough by now."

Naruto quickly jumped off of the ledge he'd been sitting on, and walked _slowly_ towards the stadium.

Meanwhile, at the special 'Kage-only booth', the 3 Kages were conversing. "So, Hokage-dono, who do you think will win in the first fight?" The Kazekage asked.

"Hmm..." Sarutobi stroked his chin thoughtfully. "I personally think it will be a close win by Naruto-kun."

"He _is_ quite strong," Hoshimi commented.

"I see..." The Kazekage nodded. _'Damn it, I'll have to fight _two_ Kages... If I kill the Mizukage, then Kiri will be after me... If I recall correctly, Kisame swore his loyalty to the Godaime Mizukage... Damn it!' _"I'm sure the highlight will be the fight between Sasuke-kun and Gaara, though."

"Oh? Why is that?" Sarutobi asked.

"Sasuke-kun _is_ the last Uchiha," Kazekage answered vaguely.

_'I wonder about that...'_ "Ah, of course," Sarutobi nodded sagely.

At that exact moment, Naruto landed cleanly in front of all three of them. It appeared he'd nearly _flown _that far.

10 metres away, a bull angrily rubbed it's hooves against the ground.

"Ah, sorry about that Jiji, Nee-chan," Naruto rubbed his head in embarrassment.

"It's alright, Naruto-kun. Shouldn't you be down there?" Sarutobi asked.

"Probably," Naruto shrugged. He was about to jump down, when he suddenly turned around, and looked suspiciously at the Kazekage. "Hmm... Do I know you from somewhere?"

"I don't believe so," The Kazekage replied.

"That's weird... You smell like snake..." Naruto mused. "Alright, anyways... I might as well make a dramatic entrance!"

Naruto made a quick hand seal and murmured, **"Oni-Shunshin no Jutsu. (Demonic Body Flicker Technique)"**

The crowd watched in awe as a whirlwind of flames appeared in the 'main stage' of the stadium. The proctor invisibly tensed; preparing for a fight. In a second, the flames disappeared, revealing Naruto.

"Show-off," Hikari murmured, as he stood in line with the other contestants.

"You know I'm good at it," Naruto countered.

Naruto watched as Sarutobi walked towards the ledge of the special 'Kage-only booth', and began to speak. "Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for coming to Konohagakure no Sato's Chunin selection exams today. We will now begin the main matches with the eight that have passed the preliminaries. Please enjoy the matches."

"One of your participants seems to be missing," The Kazekage pointed out.

"Well, it's time to kick ass!" Naruto yelled; to the amusement of the other participants. He noticed a red-haired boy (whom he recognized as Gaara) staring at him. "What?"

"Mother wants your blood..." He drawled in an evil voice.

"Oh, cool..." Naruto laughed. "You're doing the evil voice wrong, by the way... You're supposed to say, '**Mother wants your blood...'"**

Gaara recoiled at the sound of Naruto's demonic voice, and Naruto chuckled.

"There are some things I need to tell you before the match," The proctor explained. "Look at this," He pointed towards a piece of paper. "There's been a slight chance in the match-ups. Check to see who you're going against again."

Naruto looked at the list, and noticed that Shikamaru wasn't going against Dosu. He noticed a small cackle from Gaara, and knew immediately that it was Gaara's fault. Naruto shrugged, "Too troublesome to care..."

"Listen up," The proctor commanded. "Although the landscape is different, the same rules apply as in the preliminaries; there are no rules. The match will only end when somebody dies or gives up. But, if I decide that the match is over, I will stop the match. Do not argue with me over it. Got it?"

The proctor watched all of them nod, and then he raised his voice. "The first match is Uzumaki Naruto and Hyuuga Neji."

To Be Continued.

* * *

**So, yeah. Interesting, training, fluff, then crack. Then, we go back to storyline. Amusing what a couple days of boredom can do to you, amirite?**

**(Insert 2nd rant/something that nobody reads; purpose: increase word count, get opinions from my readers)**

**Basically, the idea to make this a filler came from... My head, obviously. Word's still being a bitch cuz it refuses to acknowledge my left/right clicks in the text area, but I'll deal. Sadly; Word has degenerated further. Now; when I try to center something, it freezes. So I have to terminate process, open again, _then_ center.**

**"Bill, Microsoft has been associated with fail in my books for a while. You have just surpassed the last 'fail-record'. Congratu-fucking-lations."**

**Lmfao, yes, I'm being a bitch. I've gotten to the point that I'm running out of _good_ 100k+ word stories. (Good = good plot; good grammar, and NOT NaruHina/NaruSaku/Yaoi)**

**I _would_ ask why people read Yaoi, but I'm pretty sure you'd counter with "Why do guys read Yuri?"**

**My answer: Because it fucking wins. IMHO, Yaoi doesn't. That's just 'cuz I don't want to read it. I don't really care about sexual preferences... so long as guys don't hit on me.**

**Anyways... Last rant of the day. Please note that these rants aren't made to alienate my readers. I'm actually curious re: the answers.  
**

**NaruHina. Why must you write this? Hinata is _scared_ to talk to Naruto. I personally judge girls on two things: personality and looks. Naturally, personality comes first. A girl that's scared to talk to me? I'm pretty sure I'd have to say nty. Then, there's the eyes. They scare the hell out of me. I _like_ eyes. I _personally_ have wanted crimson or gray eyes at one point in my life. _Purple_ eyes _without_ pupils are scary. The _veins_ of Byakugan are even scarier. I once had a dream where Hinata morphed into the "Byakumonster". Trust me when I say this: I rarely dream. If I dream, it's either cuz I'm scared like fuck, or I'm happy. Or anxious. Basically: I don't see how you can get Hinata with Naruto.**

**(My _real_ argument: She relies on him for strength. I prefer it when somebody uses their own strength tyvm. If you want to change yourself, then do it for _yourself_, not for that blonde-haired bastard who gets _all the fucking girls!)_**

**To those of you who didn't notice: My rants increase my word count. Therefore increasing my avg words written. As of today, I've written over 150k words for Fanfic. Hooray!**

**- Laterz :)**

**(yeah, sorry to make you hope I actually wrote more than 3,846 words).**

**(Has anybody noticed that there's actually some good stories with NaruIno out there? (No, not NarutoxInoichi. If you thought that's what I meant, you scare me.) I didn't really expect that. Anyways, laterz)  
**


	12. Uzumaki ryu Sennen Goroshi

**Not as many reviews last time... Did my rants scare you away?**

**Alright... I updated this chapter. It's quite interesting, in my opinion (the second half)  
**

**Neji vs. Naruto: Who'll win? Besides our favourite angsty shinobi, of course.**

**Actually, I like this fight. It's Angst vs. Angst. One end is angry b/c his father was killed (I skipped over half his rant 'cuz Neji's a self-absorbed bitch) and the other's angry because his father's identity was withheld and let's not forget the simple fact that his father sealed an epic-pwnage Kyuubi inside him.**

**Then, we have the Orochimaru invasion thingy. C'est bon, n'est-ce pas? (Yes, that's what I get from French Summer School. I learn some words and grammar. To those of you who don't got french: That's great/good, isn't it? [I think...])  
**

**BTW: I want some more good fics that are readable. I've pretty much read through all the ones you guys've reccomended.**

**_Karibanu: Interesting perspective. I personally believe that Sakura's still too absorbed in Sasuke, and she's on a perpetual-rebound-type-thingy. Hinata's... well, she's Hinata. I try not to bash characters much. If you noticed that last chapter, I made Sasuke seem a _little_ better... Originally, I was intending for Naruto and Sasuke to be friends. Then, I had a bad day and made him a bitch. Sooo yeah._**

**Enjoy.**

_

* * *

---Last Time---_

_"There are some things I need to tell you before the match," The proctor explained. "Look at this," He pointed towards a piece of paper. "There's been a slight chance in the match-ups. Check to see who you're going against again."_

_Naruto looked at the list, and noticed that Shikamaru wasn't going against Dosu. He noticed a small cackle from Gaara, and knew immediately that it was Gaara's fault. Naruto shrugged, "Too troublesome to care..."_

_"Listen up," The proctor commanded. "Although the landscape is different, the same rules apply as in the preliminaries; there are no rules. The match will only end when somebody dies or gives up. But, if I decide that the match is over, I will stop the match. Do not argue with me over it. Got it?"_

_The proctor watched all of them nod, and then he raised his voice. "The first match is Uzumaki Naruto and Hyuuga Neji."_

_---And Now... The Moment of Truth---_

Naruto sighed as he looked upon the city from the Hokage monument. "So it's begun, huh?"

He was about to eat the pack of ramen he'd brought with him, when he'd noticed something interesting. "Shinobi from Kumogakure…?"

Back at the stadium, Naruto and Neji were left facing each other, in a mini-standoff. "I suggest you back down now," Neji coldly suggested. "Trash will always be trash."

"Oh really?" Naruto bitterly laughed. "See, my sensei has this theory about trash… He thinks that those who break the rules are trash…" Naruto let a small smirk grace his face. "But those who abandon their team mates, their friends… are worse than scum. You're one of the few people that fit into that category Neji. I'm not backing down."

Kakashi looked on with pride. "I _knew_ I taught him something!"

"That's deep…" Jiraiya commented.

Neji scoffed and prepared himself for the inevitable assault. Naruto casually tossed two kunai in Neji's direction; both of them missing and embedding themselves behind him. The crowd watched in anticipation as Naruto tossed another two kunai; both embedding themselves in front of him.

"Explode!" Naruto yelled, and Neji's eyes widened when the kunai exploded and shattered into pieces.

"Interesting… By painting a seal onto the actual kunai, and simply foregoing the explosive tag; the opponent doesn't expect it… Moreover, if you surround them with it, there's a smaller chance of their escape," Jiraiya commented approvingly.

Neji narrowed his eyes and waited for Naruto's next move. When it became apparent that Naruto wasn't planning to move again, Neji rushed in and assumed a typical Jūken stance. Naruto watched impassively as Neji quickly thrust his palm towards Naruto's chest. Just as Neji's palm was about to make the impact, Naruto moved to the side and twisted Neji's hand, revelling in Neji's scream of pain.

"So, you are a screamer!" Naruto laughed. "Well then, Neji… Scream for me." Naruto twisted Neji's wrist until it was _nearly_ broken. Just as it was about to be broken, Naruto nonchalantly released his wrist and kicked Neji back. The intensity of Neji's glare increased and Naruto laughed. "Well, let's see how _fate_ plans to make me lose."

_**"You should summon a toad and slap him with it," **__Hitomi offered._

"You know, Neji…" Naruto offered. "If I recall correctly… You called me a dropout, right? Well, I hope you enjoy getting your ass kicked by a dropout."

As soon as Naruto uttered those words, he smirked as Neji's demeanour became more aggressive. With no care for his own safety, Neji ran towards Naruto and began ferociously attacking with Jūken strikes targeted for various vital spots. Naruto easily dodged every single strike; choosing not to attack on his own. After dodging 10 hits, Naruto decided he'd teach Neji a lesson.

Jumping back, Naruto quickly drew on his electrical chakra, and smirked. Naruto ran towards Neji and poked him in the forehead. Neji was about to insult Naruto, when he realized he couldn't move.

"Did you know…? If I put enough electricity in to mess with your Central Nervous System, I can make it hard for you to move?" Naruto asked, conversationally. "You can surrender, or fight. I don't mind."

_**"Seriously, slap him with that toad."**_

"Fate has declared me the winner!" Neji grunted; attempting to move his legs. After a minute, he finally regained control of his body.

"Oh, he's screwed," Kakashi sighed. "Even _I_ recognize that you don't wanna fight Naruto when he's got a grudge against you."

"What'd the kid do?" Jiraiya asked.

"He nearly killed his cousin, and talked about fate," Kakashi responded. "I'm willing to bet that he's gonna belittle Naruto and assume that Naruto's never suffered a day of hardship."

"Well… Time for shit to hit the fan," Jiraiya sighed.

"Ah screw it, let's go with the original strategy," Naruto shrugged. **"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" **_"It'd way more fun if I could summon Hitomi… in her original state…" _

Immediately, 10 clones of Naruto popped up, and all of them began erratically attacking Neji. Neji easily dodged them through acrobatic manoeuvres, and other various means. Neji quickly deduced that the Naruto which was staying back was real. Neji quickly ran past all of the clones and hit the 'real Naruto' by his collarbone.

Immediately, all of the other clones disappeared, and the remaining Naruto coughed up blood. "You're the real one," Neji cockily pointed out.

Naruto grinned in response. "Are you sure?"

Neji's eyes widened, and before he could move back, Naruto had grabbed his arm, and he changed into a bolt of electricity, shocking Neji.

Neji's head whipped round, just as Naruto kicked him square in the cheek. Neji went flying back, and when he tried to use his arm to soften the blow. Sadly, Neji's arm was burnt; hurting him far more than it should have.

"You shouldn't underestimate me," Naruto pointed out. Neji gritted his teeth and watched helplessly as Naruto created more clones which all rushed towards him. Neji got to his feet and took a stance. Just as the Naruto clones reached him, Neji spun; releasing chakra continuously.

All of the clones flew back and dispersed in a cloud of dust. Naruto watched with interest as Neji clutched his arm in pain. Naruto slowly walked towards Neji, who smirked. "You are within the range of my divination."

Naruto's eyes widened and he watched as Neji took up another stance. **"****Hakke Rokujūyon Shō (Gentle Fist Style: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms)" **Neji gave Naruto a condescending smirk as he flew towards Naruto. **"Hakke!" **Neji began hitting Naruto with his palms in exponents of two. "Two Strikes! Four Strikes! Eight Strikes! Sixteen Strikes! Thirty-two strikes! Sixty-four strikes!" He yelled, as he hit Naruto in the areas between his neck and floating ribs.

Naruto flew back from the force of the attack, and Neji smirked again. The proctor began to walk towards the two, and sighed. "I guess that's the end."

The entire coliseum was filled with silence as everybody watched on, wondering whether Naruto was truly defeated or not.

"I hit all 64 tenketsu points in your body," Neji pointed out. "You cannot stand up anymore." He watched Naruto struggle remorselessly. "Mortifying, isn't it? You are on your knees against a power you cannot face, finding out how truly powerless you are. It is only an illusion that hard work makes dreams come true."

Naruto gritted his teeth and looked up at Neji with unmasked contempt.

_Hinata held her side in pain after receiving a taxing Jūken blow to her heart._

_"Hinata…" _Naruto's visage was set in pure determination. "Damn it…"

Everybody looked at Naruto in shock. Multitudes of thoughts were running through everybody's head. Many people were hoping that the 'demon brat' would die at Neji's hands; others were hoping that Naruto would put Neji in his place….

Naruto unsteadily rose to his feet, and looked towards Neji.

"This guy…" Neji spat. "It can't be!"

"I told you not to underestimate me, Neji," Naruto laughed.

"Stop fighting," Neji commanded. "It's going to be the same even if you continue. I have no grudge against you."

"Shut up," Naruto snapped. "Even if you don't, I have one against you. Why… even when you're so strong… Why do you have eyes that seem to _say_ you know everything…? Why did you mentally attack Hinata like that when she was trying her best?!"

"That has nothing to do with you," Neji coldly replied.

"You ridiculed Hinata and labelled her as a dropout," Naruto continued. "The head family and branch family, I don't know what happened between them… But bastards like you who call other people dropouts will have to deal with me!"

"Very well, I will tell you since you seem to care so much… About the Hyuuga's fate of hatred! The Hyuuga have a secret technique that is passed on within the head family. That is the cursed seal technique. That cursed seal symbolizes a caged bird… and is also a symbol of those who are bound within an inescapable destiny," Neji explained, as he removed his forehead protector; displaying a tattoo in the form of an 'X'.

"One day, when I was four, this detestable seal was carved into me with the cursed seal technique," Neji finished. "This cursed seal will only disappear after my death… and it seals up the Byakugan ability."

"Let me get this straight…" Naruto rolled his eyes. "Actually no, I'm pretty sure I understand it. Needless to say… You're so pitiful it disgusts me."

"What-"

"Shit hits the fan," Jiraiya nearly sang. Somebody behind him whacked him on the head with an orange book.

"You hate Hinata because of her _father_!" Naruto nearly yelled. "You then go and flaunt your elitist attitude around Konoha, assuming that it's just compensation for the sins against you. You're so fucking conceited that it's not even funny!"

"Why you…" Neji glared, and readied himself to attack Naruto.

"You're not the only one that's had it hard! Ever since my birth, I've been an orphan! Every single day, I had to wonder whether or not I'd be killed by some drunken villager, or some misguided shinobi! I had to wonder if my parents abandoned me for reasons beyond my control! I had to hide out on my birthdays in fear that they'd burn me alive _again_!" Naruto yelled. "So don't you fucking tell me that your life's been hard! You might be strong," Naruto hissed, "But you couldn't survive a day in my life."

"Enough talking," Naruto spat. "I will defeat you in the most humiliating way you can think of."

Neji smirked condescendingly, "Bring it on, _dropout_. You can't even channel chakra."

"My tenketsu were never sealed…" Naruto smirked, and focussed. _"Could I get some yoki?"_

_**"Summon a toad and slap him with it," **__Hitomi deadpanned. __**"Wait, wrong line. Sure you can have some yoki…"**_

Naruto moved his hand up to form a ram seal, and Neji watched intently. "I intend to kill him, examiner. Feel free to stop me."

"Why do you fight so hard?" Neji asked.

"Because…" Naruto venomously replied. "You called me trash. You called me a dropout. Now it's time to show you that even trash can beat the likes of you."

"My little Naruto's grown up," Kakashi pretended to sob.

Neji turned on his Byakugan and watched intently as small flecks of yoki began to populate his chakra coils. "This can't be…" Neji murmured.

"Oh, it can…" Naruto grinned; appearing behind Neji. "I said I'll beat you in the most humiliating way, and I will… **Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"**

Five clones of Naruto immediately began to occupy Neji as Naruto backed away and began to concentrate intently on his elemental chakra._ "Make a magnetic field with lightning…"_ Beads of sweat broke out on Naruto's face as metal slowly began to fly in the air and cover Naruto's right index and middle finger. _"Wind…"_ He concentrated intently, and the air around his right index and middle finger began to swirl and form a miniature cyclone. He turned his scarlet-slit eyes towards Neji.

**"Burn it up!" **Naruto roared, as his hands burst into flame. Neji watched in fear as Naruto reappeared behind him. **"Uzumaki-ryu: Sennen Goroshi! (Uzumaki Style: Thousand Years of Death)"**

Naruto shoved his flaming index and middle fingers, complete with sharp metal, up Neji's rectum. Neji screamed in pain, and Naruto completed the last phase of his attack. **"Bakuhatsu! (Explode!)"**

A major explosion occurred in the stadium, and Neji flew into the air; propelled by the force of Naruto's explosion up his rectum. The Naruto who'd just performed the technique disappeared in a puff of smoke and only one Naruto was left standing.

Neji came crashing to the ground, and he fell in a crater. The proctor stared at Naruto in disbelief for a minute. After clearing his head, the proctor checked Neji for consciousness. "Winner: Uzumaki Naruto!"

The stands were silent. "I think… That's an S-Rank technique if I've ever seen one…" Kakashi blinked.

"I think it's SS-Rank…" Jiraiya shivered. The stands were still silent. Rolling his eyes, Jiraiya stood up and began heavily applauding for Naruto. Soon, the rest of the people follow Jiraiya's example.

"That was quite a… interesting fight," Hoshimi blinked.

"There's no other word for it, Mizukage-dono…" Sarutobi nodded in disbelief.

"Hey, Neji… When caged birds grow wiser, they try to open the cage with their own beaks." Naruto gave the proctor a mini-salute with his index and middle finger; disappearing in a puff of smoke.

_'He was a Kage Bunshin all along, eh?' _The proctor laughed.

"He's cute," one of the girls sitting in the stand commented.

"If the gaki has a fan club, I'll personally use that technique on him," Jiraiya threatened; with his eyebrow twitching. "Speaking of which… Didn't _you_ have a fan club, Kakashi?"

Kakashi laughed nervously, "Well…"

"The next match will be between Sabaku no Gaara, and Uchiha Sasuke!" The proctor yelled, quieting everybody.

From his perch atop the Hokage monument, Naruto frowned thoughtfully. He _knew_ that one of those shinobi from Kumogakure was a container for a Bijū; meaning that the stakes of this 'operation' had already been raised.

Naruto allowed himself a small smirk when the memories from his clone reached him, and murmured, "So a clone shoved two fingers up his ass… kinky."

Naruto silently laughed, and quickly jumped towards the coliseum, intent on getting the important information regarding the Kumogakure squad to Jiraiya.

Naruto moved as quickly as he could, while making as little noise as possible. Soon, he'd reached his destination; the arena hosting the Chunin exams. Naruto landed silently beside Jiraiya. "Yo, Ero-sennin," Naruto murmured.

"What is it, gaki?" Jiraiya asked irately. "If you've come to gloat about your fan club…"

Naruto blinked. "I have a fan club? _Anyways_, there's a Jinchūriki _from Kumogakure_ hiding near the main gate."

Jiraiya's eyes widened. "From Kumogakure no Sato…? Last I checked, they had the Nibi and the Hachibi… Show me where you saw them," Jiraiya commanded.

"Yes, _sir_," Naruto mock-saluted and quickly jumped off; ensuring that Jiraiya was following him. In a matter of minutes, they reached the Hokage monument, which was a good location for reconnaissance.

"Hmm…" Jiraiya frowned as he peered through his telescope – mostly reserved for remote peeking. "It looks like they've brought the container of the Nibi. Good luck fighting that humungous cat."

Naruto protested, "What the hell? You want me to fight the Ichibi and the Nibi at the same time? That's retarded!"

Jiraiya sighed, "I'm pretty sure you could use a shadow clone, right?"

"I could, but why do you want me to beat two Jinchūriki at the same time?" Naruto asked. "I'm sure the great Gama-sennin could kick the ass of at least one of those demon containers."

"Well, here's the problem," Jiraiya explained. "I have a feeling that Orochimaru's involved."

"Alright, and?" Naruto looked at Jiraiya, urging him to continue.

"That's it," Jiraiya sheepishly finished.

"Alright, since you have a _feeling_ that Orochimaru's involved, I'll send another clone there," Naruto rolled his eyes. "No, I'm not being sarcastic."

"No offence, but your clones could scratch Orochimaru," Jiraiya stated.

"Uhh, how much of an explosion do you think a clone containing one tail's worth of chakra would cause?" Naruto asked.

"That's not an explosion…" Jiraiya shook his head remorsefully, "That's a 20 megaton bomb."

"Yeah, I know," Naruto nodded. "I hit Orochimaru with one of those."

Jiraiya stared at Naruto, "Alright kid, I'll help you with the Nibi."

"That's all I ask," Naruto grinned. "So, you wanna go see Sasuke get his ass kicked?"

Jiraiya stared at Naruto. "You know that he'll get killed against Gaara, right?"

Naruto's grin turned into a frown. "That's no fun… Oh well, I might as well head there so we can save him," Naruto sighed as he leapt towards the stadium again. Jiraiya sighed and followed Naruto.

"Mother wants your blood," Gaara hissed, as he stared sadistically towards Sasuke.

"I won't lose to somebody like you," Sasuke spat.

"You'd think he'd have learnt at least one lesson by now…" Kakashi sighed from the stands.

Gaara cackled maniacally as sand began to slowly move towards Sasuke. Sasuke easily dodged the sand and ran towards Gaara with a kunai in hand. Sasuke tried to stab Gaara with a kunai, but sand quickly flew up and formed a defence wherever Sasuke tried to hit. Sasuke gritted his teeth and threw the kunai towards Gaara; throwing a kick at the same time. The sand easily blocked the two blows, and a creepy grin wormed its way onto Gaara's face. "You're pathetic," He hissed. "Mother won't revel in your blood."

Sasuke hissed in pain as Gaara sent a strand of sand to lash out towards Sasuke as a whip would. Sasuke quickly jumped back a safe distance and focussed his chakra intently. **"Katon: Gōkakyu no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Grand Fireball Technique)"**

Sasuke brought his hand up to his mouth in the shape of a circle and blew. The air which went through his hand came out as a large fireball. Gaara watched passively as the fireball flew towards him, only to be blocked by a wall of sand. Gaara consciously willed the sand to go on the ground; not noticing the shuriken which were hiding in the fireball. Gaara hissed as one of the shuriken impacted against his cheek; falling to the ground with a lump of sand. Gaara's eyes widened in shock as he felt a warm sensation in his cheek, and he hesitantly lifted his hand to feel his cheek. "What is this…?" Gaara murmured. "I want your blood, Uchiha!" Gaara screamed.

Immediately, the sand wormed its way towards Sasuke, and latched onto his leg. Sasuke's eyes widened and he tried to free his leg, to no avail. Sasuke's eyes widened as the sand began to move upwards, and Gaara cackled, **"Sabaku Kyū**. **(Sand Binding Coffin)"**

Sasuke screamed as the pressure of the sand increased, and it continued making its way upwards. Just as the sand was about to reach his thigh and crush… a very important part of his anatomy; the sand suddenly stopped. Sasuke's eyes widened and he glanced towards Gaara; who was residing inside a sphere of sand.

The next few minutes passed as a blur. In mere minutes, Gaara emerged from the sphere as a very horrifying image. Just as the 'new and improved Gaara' was about to crush Sasuke, a figure landed in front of him. Gaara hissed, and the sand subverted itself to the man in front of Sasuke.

Naruto grinned, and brought his hands up in a familiar seal. Channelling 3 tails of demonic chakra as quickly as he could, Naruto yelled, **"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"**

A puff of smoke covered the entire arena, and three clones of Naruto appeared. The proctor was just about to interfere, when a large genjutsu was cast over the area; disabling the majority of Konoha shinobi.

Naruto nodded to his clones. The four of them quickly separated. Naruto 'clone #1' used the Shunshin to get to the Kage-only area, just as a barrier was cast. Naruto 'clone #2' followed the demonic Gaara towards the main portion of the city. Naruto 'clone #3' ran towards the main gate, while the original Naruto essentially disappeared.

In the competitor lobby, everybody was still trying to come to terms with what was happening. Before they knew it, Temari and Kankurou had gone after Gaara. Hikari shrugged and went to the place she knew she'd be needed the most: the now-protected Kage-area.

_---With Naruto Clone #1 (Kage-Only Area) ---_

"Kukuku, your reign as Hokage ends here, Sarutobi-sensei," The Kazekage cackled; peeling away his face to reveal a 50-year old, gay pedophile with a snake fetish.

"Orochimaru," Sarutobi hissed. "Mizukage-dono, could I request your help in this?"

"Don't worry about it, Jiji," Naruto grinned; revealing himself. "I'm more than enough for this guy."

Hoshimi looked at Naruto with a frown, but immediately jumped out of the area when she saw one of her ANBU beckoning her. The men were none the wiser.

"Naruto, are you sure?" Sarutobi asked in concern.

"Oh, you mean you didn't hear about our encounter in the forest?" Naruto laughed. "Then again, I suppose it _would_ be an insult to Orochimaru if people found out he got his ass kicked by a mere Genin."

"That was a lucky shot," Orochimaru hissed. "Since you're here, I won't hesitate to pay you back in full." Orochimaru quickly formed seals. **"Kuchiyose: Edo Tensei! (Summoning: Impure Resurrection)"**

Before anybody could react, three coffins appeared out of the ground. Sarutobi's eyes widened when he read the inscriptions upon the coffins. He was about to throw a kunai towards the third coffin, when all three of them opened…

_---With Naruto Clone #2 (Fighting Shukaku) ---_

Naruto frowned as he ran after Gaara. When he looked back upon this moment, he'd wonder why it took him so long to catch a huge tower of sand which was moving at one metre per minute.

Naruto growled and threw a shuriken towards Gaara, stopping the goliath in its tracks. "Damn it Gaara, your fight is with me!"

**"Heehehe!" **Gaara laughed. Naruto's eyes widened when he heard the laugh. It sounded positively demonic. **"I'm free!"**

"Not for long, you son of a bitch…" Naruto hissed, as he quickly made multiple hand seals faster than many would think possible. **"Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu! (Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique)"**

Naruto gritted his teeth in concentration as water flew out from a nearby river, and rushed towards the Shukaku incarnate. As the water flew closer towards Shukaku, it took the shape of a majestic dragon, and Naruto did something many would think impossible: he laced it with wind.

Beside Naruto was a clone running off the minimum of chakra; modifying the dragon so that it would be laced with wind chakra in addition to the water chakra already flowing through it. Just as the dragon impacted Shukaku, the clone disappeared and the place of impact began to freeze over.

**"Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Grand Fireball Technique)" **Naruto yelled, as he inhaled deeply; forcing yoki to take the shape of fire. Just as Naruto exhaled, a bright purple flame quickly went towards Shukaku and cracked the sand in many places; turning it to glass. Naruto's eyes widened as Shukaku simply reformed the missing limbs, and easily batted Naruto away.

Knowing that he wouldn't be able to survive the impact easily, Naruto did something amazingly desperate. He absorbed chakra from Shukaku. The sand arm which impacted him quickly lost shape just as it hit him, and Naruto flew back ten feet. _"Damn it, I can't make it if I just fight him myself… That means…"_

_---With Naruto Clone #3 (Going for the Nibi) ---_

"Hurry up, gaki," Jiraiya commanded, as he leapt in front of a blond-haired woman.

"Don't worry about it, Ero-sennin… Our target's right here," Naruto sighed; landing right beside Jiraiya. "Could you surrender? It'd save us a lot of trouble."

"Like hell!" The blonde-haired woman scoffed. She quickly took out a shuriken and threw it at Naruto, only for it to be caught. She quickly engaged him in taijutsu, attempted to hit him with anything.

"If this is the extent of what your village teaches Jinchūriki, I pity you," Naruto laughed as he dodged the attacks.

The woman hissed, "Screw you."

"Somebody already is," Jiraiya helpfully offered. Naruto sent a quick death glare towards Jiraiya, and he kicked the girl in the temple. Just as Naruto retracted his foot, she quickly grabbed it and waited.

Naruto blinked. "Was something supposed to happen?"

"Damn it!" She yelled, as she threw his foot towards the ground and jumped back. "Fine, I've only got one other choice then."

Naruto nodded towards Jiraiya, who quickly kicked her before she could do anything. The girl grabbed Jiraiya's leg, just as she did with Naruto's. Jiraiya's eyes widened, and he gave Naruto a sad smile. "Sorry gaki, I can't help you."

Naruto blinked as Jiraiya dispersed into a cloud of smoke. **"Damn it, Jiraiya!"** Naruto roared.

The girl jumped back again, and closed her eyes, drawing upon her Bijū's power. Naruto's eyes widened as she began to hunch over and was slowly covered with blue chakra.

**"Son of a bitch!" **Naruto growled, and he racked his brain for answers. _"I need to fight something stronger than me… I can't make it if I fight her myself, which means…"_

_---Back with Clone #1---_

Naruto's eyes widened as the three men stepped out of their respective coffins. He quickly glanced over them, and he gritted his teeth as he noticed the last man. "Namikaze Minato…" Naruto hissed.

"Sarutobi, you old monkey, I thought I was dead!" Minato laughed.

"You are…" Sarutobi solemnly bowed his head. "I was hoping I wouldn't have to fight you here, Minato."

"Nothing for us?" The Shodai Hokage, Senju Hashirama pretended to frown.

"What'd we train you for?" The Nidaime Hokage, Senju Tobirama asked.

"You…" Naruto glared at Orochimaru. **"Will pay!"**

Orochimaru scoffed, and he quickly threw three kunai towards the back of the summoned humans. Just as the kunai was about to hit the Yondaime, Jiraiya appeared out of nowhere, and grabbed the kunai disapprovingly. He quickly inspected the seal, and stored it in his pocket for further reference. "Orochimaru, you've overstepped your boundaries…" Jiraiya shook his head as Minato jumped to their side.

"For further reference, I am _so_ kicking your ass after this," Naruto glared at Minato, who laughed nervously. "Either way, Orochimaru… I can't forgive your transgressions, therefore…" Naruto quickly formed hand seals and poured yoki into his body.

_At the exact same time, the three Naruto clones bit their fingers and thrust their hand upon the ground. **"Kuchiyose no Jutsu! (Summoning Technique)"**_

To Be Continued.

* * *

**Well, I wonder what'll happen... All three are doing a Kuchiyose at the same time. FYI: They're aiming for the boss summon. Then, we've got the small fact that we've got a missing Naruto, and we still don't know what's happening outside of the barrier with Hikari.**

**Yeah, let's see... do I have my daily rant prepared?**

**Right: There's not enough stories which occupy my time. My issue is that I _love_ to stay busy, and thus I don't like shorter stories (less than 20k words). What do I do? I filter all the fics to see why have 100k+ words. I'm pretty much running out of good fics with 100k+ words to read. I'm just too fast a reader.**

**And then, there's anime. I'm running out of good series which _I_ think are good, rather than others thinking they're good. Naturally, I'm waiting on Ookami to Koushinryou (Spice and Wolf II, it's epic) II Episode 5, 'cuz I rly wanna see how the Amarty - Horo - Lawrence thing will turn out. I'm rooting for Lawrence 'cuz he's my kinda guy. He's smart and he won't let that girl with the uber-kawaii-ears-and-tail leave him. _Some_ would say it's wrong. I would say that it's the better couple out there.**

**BTW: Anyboy wanna tell me the deal with the Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu II episodes 2 - 8? They have the same title, and I think they're the same content....**

**Kay, that's enough ranting, right?**

** Laterz.**


	13. Paralyzing Losses

**Mhmm, yeah, it's late. Don't blame me, it's all because I couldn't login yesterday. In addition, I didn't actually finish this till yesterday. Erm, not that it's my fault or anything *laughs nervously***

**Anyways... I'm still looking for good stories to read. I found that the ANBU-Naruto variety's also good. Same with time travel. I was shocked when I realized that. Hell, if I wasn't so lazy; I'd prob write a time-travel fic. Yup.**

**Either way, this is the aftermath of the invasion, and then we see what actually happened through a series of flashbacks. Feel free to pity Naruto atm.  
**

* * *

Naruto stared upon the coffin despondently; completely disregarding the rain. _"How… How could I let this happen…?" _He asked himself. No matter how much Naruto wanted to cry, the tears wouldn't come, and he simply found himself staring listlessly upon the lifeless face of his surrogate grandfather.

His gaze slowly transferred towards Kakashi, who seemed to feel as bad (if not worse) as he did. When Kakashi noticed Naruto's gaze, Naruto quickly moved his eyes away, and stared upon Sarutobi's peaceful face again, feeling all the stares.

Pity. How he hated that simple emotion. It was the emotion he tried to avoid most, second only to hate. _"It's my fault…" _He gritted his teeth in frustration. _"If I'd just been smarter… if I'd watched…"_

"Naruto…" Iruka placed a reassuring hand upon Naruto's shoulder. "Are you going to be alright?"

Naruto simply looked back at Iruka, who visibly flinched at his soulless eyes. "I'll be fine," Naruto monotonously replied.

"Are you sure?" Iruka offered Naruto a kind smile. "I know how much Hikari meant to you…"

"I'll be fine," Naruto repeated. Even now, as the crowd was dwindling; he could still feel the hate emanating off of the villagers who blamed him… The pity emanating off of his friends, who knew how much Hikari meant to him.

"He's taking it pretty badly," Minato commented to Kakashi.

"Sensei, how would you feel if the one you loved was captured by Orochimaru?" Kakashi asked. "The worst part for him is the simple fact that the council won't allow any retrieval missions to go through."

The crowd slowly started to trickle away from Naruto's location, until only he remained. Naruto felt his legs move towards his apartment without his prodding, allowing him to wallow in his own self-resentment.

_---During the Fight/Invasion: Original Naruto---_

Naruto smirked cockily as he took out another shinobi from Oto. The smirk only increased when he heard the telltale sign of two kunai flying towards him. Just as the kunai were about to hit him; he ducked, causing two more casualties.

Suddenly, Naruto found himself surrounded on all sides, and he nearly laughed as they all took out kunai and prepared to throw. _"Why do I get all the idiots?"_

Naruto's eyes widened in shock when he felt a tickling sensation in his nose, and his shock only increased when he saw one of the shinobi begin to throw a kunai at him. Just as the kunai was released from the shinobi's hand, Naruto sneezed violently; causing a startling blue flame to (painfully) exit his mouth.

As the flame exited his mouth, it quickly melted the kunai midair and landed upon the shinobi who'd thrown it. Naruto curiously watched the man's writhing, wondering what had just happened. _"Any ideas as to what that was?"_

_ **"Kitsune-bi," **Hitomi nonchalantly replied._

Naruto was about to ask her to elaborate, when he remembered the other shinobi around him. _"Oh, this'll be fun…"_ Naruto gave a feral grin, and quickly eliminated the other threats.

_---During the Fight/Invasion: Naruto vs. Shukaku---_

When the smoke from Naruto's summon was blown away, Naruto was standing safely on top of a large toad. "Yo, Gamabunta, do you think you can help me out?"

**"Hmm?" **Gamabunta looked around, **"You want me to fight against Shukaku, gaki?"**

"It'd be nice…" Naruto sullenly replied.

Luckily (or unluckily), _that_ decision was made when Shukaku began to channel its chakra and yelled, **"Fūton: Renkūdan! (Wind Release: Drilling Air Bullet)"**

Gamabunta jumped as Shukaku released a massive burst of compressed air; sending shockwaves throughout the area. Gamabunta sighed, **"Alright, gaki. I'll help you out with this, but you've gotta take a drink with me sometime. Suiton: Teppōdama no Jutsu! (Water Release: Bullet Technique)"**

Gamabunta's cheeks puffed out, and he shot large bursts of water towards Shukaku, who simply laughed maniacally. Naruto was about to use a jutsu, when he noticed something strange. "Is there a reason that Gaara's unconscious for this?"

**"If he stays conscious, Shukaku doesn't have control," **Gamabunta explained. **"Alright, gaki! New plan: we're going to wake up the Jinchūriki!"**

"Alright…" Naruto blinked. "How would we do that?"

**"You'll need to transform us into something so that I can latch onto Shukaku. Then, you go and attack that kid or something," **Gamabunta explained.

Naruto paused in thought. "Alright! Let's do this!"

Gamabunta chuckled as he moved towards Shukaku in large leaps. Just as Gamabunta was upon Shukaku, Naruto formed a seal and they transformed into a rendition of the Kyuubi.

**_"I look better than that…" _**_Hitomi complained._

They grabbed onto Shukaku with their massive paws, and Naruto quickly undid the transformation and jumped off of Gamabunta's head and nearly flew towards Gaara. Just as Naruto reached Gaara, sand leaped to protect him, and Naruto snarled as he punched his way through the sand and landed a blow on Gaara's head.

**"No! I just got out!" **Shukaku cried, as all the sand fell to the ground.

**"Well, my work is done. Remember gaki, you owe me sake!" **Gamabunta laughed as he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Naruto and Gaara both fell to the ground, and Naruto panted as he landed on his feet. He looked at Gaara, who seemed to be suffering from chakra exhaustion. Naruto walked towards Gaara who looked at him with fear in his eyes. "No! Stay away! You won't erase my existence!"

Naruto chuckled as he draped an arm around Gaara's shoulder. "You know, we would've ended up the same way… It's painful to live for yourself. Gaara let me tell you something important."

_"True power comes only when you're fighting to protect those dear to you," Hikari explained._

"True power comes only when you're fighting to protect those dear to you," Naruto grinned.

Gaara's response was a mumble, before falling asleep. Naruto looked around, and smiled. He gently set Gaara down, and formed a cross-shaped seal with his hands; disappearing in a puff of smoke.

"Yashamaru…" Gaara mumbled.

_---During the Fight/Invasion: Naruto vs. Nibi---_

Naruto looked down in amazement as a humongous fox appeared beneath him. He was about to wonder exactly _how the hell_ he got a Kitsune, when he realized something important. His finger didn't bleed when he bit it.

The black seven-tailed Kitsune growled when it felt movement on its fur. **"Who dares disturb my sleep…?"**

"I am the representative of Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto, proxy of the Kyuubi no Kitsune," Naruto declared. "I require your help in the defeat of the Nibi no Bakeneko!" **(I wrote that 'cuz it sounds cool.)**

The fox grumbled its assent, "Very well, Namikaze-sama… I will assist you, but please do visit the den in order to confirm your status as a proxy… I am Keiji."

Before Naruto could respond, the Jinchūriki threw a large fireball towards Naruto and Keiji. Keiji easily jumped over the fireball and threw one of its own, twice the size of the one which had previously been aimed at them.

The Jinchūriki cried out in pain as she was engulfed by the fire. No matter how much she moved, the fire didn't extinguish and it simply continued burning her.

"That was interesting," Naruto blinked.

The woman suddenly let out a burst of chakra which shielded her from the still-burning fire. She quickly leaped towards them and tried to capture Keiji within her claws. Keiji moved to the side and threw her away with his tail. The woman cried as she flew back into a building.

Naruto blinked when he noticed that she was starting to grow. He watched in morbid fascination as her bones cracked and realigned themselves; turning her into a giant cat. The cat hissed and whipped one of its tails towards Keiji. _"Am I the only one who can't transform into a Bijū…?" _Naruto asked himself.

Keiji caught the tail in his mouth and bit down on it. The Nibi cried out in pain as blood began to drip from the tail. Keiji swung his head upwards and caused the Nibi to fly into the air. Keiji jumped right after it, and whipped all seven of his tails towards her; causing her to fly well over the gate.

"Keiji, what's your element?" Naruto asked.

"I use fire, Namikaze-sama," Keiji replied as his muscles contracted in preparation.

"Well then…" Naruto grinned. "Get ready to throw a fire attack, alright?"

Before Keiji could respond, the Nibi pounced towards them and Naruto quickly formed seals. **"Fūton: Daitoppa! (Wind Release: Great Breakthrough)"**

A large blast of wind suddenly appeared and opposed the Nibi's motion. Keiji quickly formed a large fireball with his maw and combined it with Naruto's technique; causing a large flame to engulf the screeching cat. When the dust from the combination technique cleared, the Jinchūriki of the Nibi no Bakeneko was left lying on the ground.

Naruto sighed and jumped off of Keiji. "Thanks for the help, Keiji. I'll visit the den when I have time."

"Of course, Namikaze- sama," Keiji nodded.

"Oh, and call me Naruto," Naruto grinned. Keiji simply nodded his assent as he disappeared in a whirlwind of fire. Naruto blinked as he watched the fire. "That's badass."

Naruto turned back to the woman with a sigh, "Should I kill her, capture her, or leave her…?"

Naruto paused in thought for a moment, before shrugging. Naruto took out a piece of paper with markings on it; placing it on the woman's forehead. _"It's a good thing that we were each given one chakra suppressing seal…"_

_---During the Fight/Invasion: Naruto vs. Orochimaru---_

Naruto blinked as he saw a giant eight-tailed fox appear underneath him. Everybody stared at him in awe; questions on the edge of their tongue. Naruto looked at the hand he'd thrust onto the ground, only to find that he hadn't bitten hard enough to draw blood. The giant Kitsune roared, **"Where am I?!"**

"I, Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto, summoned you," Naruto casually replied. "You're in Konohagakure no Sato."

The fox blinked. It turned its head 180 degrees to look at Naruto, who waved. The fox slowly turned its head back where it should be. **"That's impossible! The only person who can summon a Kitsune is our leader!"**

Naruto rolled his eyes, "The Kyuubi no Kitsune was sealed inside my navel. I've summoned you. Now can we take care of those three people over there?" He pointed towards the Shodai, Nidaime and Orochimaru.

The fox growled when it felt Naruto sending out a small amount of yoki to confirm that he indeed had the Kyuubi sealed within his navel. **"Fine…" **The fox sighed. Jiraiya was the first to gain his sense back, and he quickly performed a summoning technique; bringing forth an irate Gamabunta.

**"What is it this time?" **Gamabunta grumbled.

"We're up against Orochimaru," Jiraiya explained. "Hope you don't mind?"

**"Oh, no… It's not as if I've just fought against Ichibi no Shukaku," **Gamabunta sarcastically replied. He was about to continue his complaining when he noticed two people: Naruto and Minato. **"Jiraiya, why are Minato and Naruto here? I just finished fighting Naruto, and Minato is…"**

"It's a long story, Oyabun," Minato replied as he jumped upon Gamabunta's back. "We've got to defeat Orochimaru first."

Orochimaru gritted his teeth and commanded his troops. "Kill them all!"

By now, Sarutobi had a large staff in his hands which he had summoned.

The Shodai quickly placed his hands upon the ground; causing multitudes of trees to spawn upon the roof which they were currently fighting on. At the same time, the Nidaime quickly formed a water dragon which shot towards the Kitsune which Naruto was riding upon. The Kitsune easily stopped the water with a simple flick of its tail, and it sent the water back towards the Nidaime with twice the speed and power.

Minato looked towards Jiraiya, who nodded. Minato quickly took out two three-pronged kunai and threw them towards Orochimaru. Minato disappeared in a yellow flash and when he jumped back upon Gamabunta, Orochimaru had nearly flown into the barrier which had been erected by his own shinobi.

Gamabunta quickly shot bullets of water out of his mouth; causing trees to become uprooted. The water bullets which missed the trees promptly hit the Shodai, who flew back without even crying in pain. "They have something in their head that's making them attack us; can you get rid of it?" Naruto asked the Kitsune.

**"I'll try,"** It replied. The Kitsune sent its tails after the Shodai, who easily weaved through the tails and sent trees to attack the Kitsune. The Kitsune growled and managed to corner the Shodai. It used one of its tails to pin the Shodai down, and Naruto grinned as he jumped down.

Naruto began to move his hand towards the Shodai's cranium…

_---During the Fight/Invasion: Original Naruto---_

Naruto wiped a bead of sweat off of his face, and surveyed his work. He looked approvingly upon all the scorched bodies which had surrounded him, and looked in the direction of the stadium; where one of his clones was fighting Orochimaru. Naruto frowned when he saw all the trees, and he set off towards the stadium in a burst of speed.

Naruto weaved through the hordes of shinobi, trees and other objects. Once he was finally at the stadium, he noticed an annoying barrier. It was quite easy to guess that the barrier was strong, as indicated by the ANBU standing outside of the barrier. It was also easy to assume that the only way to set down the barrier would be to force the creators to do so, which seemed to be unlikely.

Naruto walked towards Hikari, who was standing outside of the barrier with the ANBU. "Is there any way to get in?"

"There's _one_ way, but…" Hikari pursed her lips. "It requires the Mangekyou Sharingan…"

Naruto frowned. "Still, my clone's not going to last long, and I can tell that everything's going to go to hell if that huge Kitsune doesn't take care of the Shodai and Nidaime…"

Hikari glared at Naruto, and stepped forward…

_---During the Fight/Invasion: In the Barrier---_

Orochimaru hissed in pain as Minato managed to cut him yet again. Orochimaru gritted his teeth and looked at his two useless arms. He needed to get out quickly. Orochimaru attacked an unsuspecting Sarutobi, who'd been fighting against the Nidaime. Just as Sarutobi managed to crush the Nidaime's skull, Orochimaru took a sword out of his mouth and began to attack Sarutobi with said sword.

Sarutobi countered each of Orochimaru's strikes with one of his own, and managed to hit Orochimaru.

Jiraiya jumped off of Gamabunta, and helped Sarutobi fight against Orochimaru. With his help, the two of them managed to corner Orochimaru against the barrier.

Orochimaru looked around frantically for some sort of salvation, when his eyes drifted to Hikari. He watched as her eyes became red, and her pupils shifted into the shape of a pinwheel.

Naruto quickly took the kunai out of the Shodai's skull, and the Shodai gave Naruto a thankful nod, as all of them approached Orochimaru.

_---During the Fight/Invasion: Outside of the Barrier---_

Hikari forced chakra to her eyes as she closed them, and reopened them; revealing her Mangekyou Sharingan. The ANBU who'd been watching all stiffened their muscles and prepared to attack if needed.

Hikari gritted her teeth, and looked at the barrier. **"Amaterasu," **She whispered, and a black flame flew out of her eye and engulfed the barrier.

Against the flame; the barrier easily collapsed, and Hikari extinguished the flame with her eyes; clutching them in pain. Naruto looked at her in concern, but she waved him off.

Orochimaru chuckled mirthfully when he noticed her eyes. It was _perfect_!

Orochimaru quickly moved away from them, and grabbed told his minions to grab Hikari. Before she could even move, she'd been rendered unconscious and was moving towards Oto with Orochimaru.

Naruto's eyes widened in shock, and his aura immediately became malicious. Four tails grew out of his posterior, and he was about to leap after Orochimaru, when a sudden burst of lightning split the sky and the Shinigami appeared.

**"Namikaze Minato, your soul must return," **The Shinigami proclaimed. It scanned the surroundings, and shifted imperceptibly when it noticed Orochimaru and Naruto. Naruto's clone and the Kitsune leaped after Orochimaru.

"Shinigami-sama," Sarutobi asked, "Is it possible to give my soul in exchange for his?"

The Shinigami looked towards Sarutobi in interest. After a few moments of thinking, the Shinigami nodded. **"It is possible. Do you wish to do so?"**

"You can't!" Minato protested. "It was my time!"

"Yes, I wish to exchange my soul in order to ensure his may stay upon the living plain," Sarutobi responded.

**"If that is what you wish…" **The Shinigami moved its hand towards Sarutobi's stomach, and began to pull his soul out of his stomach.

"Jiji…" Naruto muttered, as he watched the proceedings. "You can't…"

Sarutobi chuckled weakly. "It's my time, Naruto… Don't worry about me. Make sure you stay safe, alright? We'll need you as Hokage soon enough…"

Naruto nodded grimly, his face twisting in sorrow.

"Minato… Make sure you take care of your son… He's a lot like Kushina-"Sarutobi coughed loudly, and looked at the blood which had leaked from his mouth.

Minato frowned, "Sarutobi…"

"Jiraiya… Bring Tsunade back," Sarutobi commanded. "That is my last order as Hokage. She must-"

"I'll try…" Jiraiya responded; interrupting Sarutobi.

Sarutobi coughed again, and weakly grinned. "Don't let Orochimaru win… When the tree leaves dance, one shall find flames. The fire's shadow will illuminate the village, and once again, tree leaves shall bud anew."

Sarutobi doubled over, and with one last cough, he fell lifelessly upon the ground. Naruto stared upon the proceedings in fear, and immediately ran away.

_---During/After the Fight/Invasion: Chasing Orochimaru---_

The Kitsune leapt majestically through the trees, chasing Orochimaru. In a matter of minutes, Orochimaru was in view. Naruto jumped off of the Kitsune and recklessly charged Orochimaru, who easily moved out of the way. Naruto gritted his teeth and threw a kunai; causing Orochimaru to duck. Naruto's eyes flashed red, and he sent a staggering amount of killing intent towards Orochimaru.

**"I will kill you…" **Naruto vowed. **"I will kill you, and make you feel unfathomable pain! I'll make you wish you were never born, that'd you never attacked Konoha!"**

Orochimaru laughed maliciously, "What could a mere genin like you do?"

Naruto simply gave Orochimaru a bloodthirsty grin. Before Orochimaru could react, Naruto lunged towards him, and managed to completely sever the nerves in his left arm.

Orochimaru screamed in pain, but kept on moving. Naruto grinned, and he sent a massive batch of purple fire towards Orochimaru.

Orochimaru swerved to the side, but the fire still managed to hit his right arm. Immediately, the nerves all burnt out, and made it impossible for Orochimaru to move either of his arms. Orochimaru screamed in anger, and rushed Naruto.

In a heartbeat, Naruto was left with a sword sticking out of his stomach.

Naruto chuckled; blood spitting out of his mouth. He took one last look at Hikari, and disappeared within a puff of smoke; leaving behind the blood.

The Kitsune who'd come along with Naruto sorrowfully reclined its head just as it disappeared within an explosion of water.

_Up until the day of Sarutobi's funeral, Naruto sat atop the head of the Yondaime in the Hokage monument. He refused to eat, sleep, or talk. All he would do was live through flashbacks. He was literally catatonic._

_---After the Funeral---_

Naruto watched the rain fall from the sky. He refused to even move from his post by the window, hoping against hope that Hikari would walk down that road. No matter how long he spent waiting, nothing changed.

By the time morning had come, Hitomi was tired of this. **_"Why are you staring out the window?"_**

_"Hikari…" _Naruto simply replied.

**_"She's gone," _**Hitomi pointed out.

_"She'll be back…"_

_ **"No, she won't,"** _Hitomi scoffed, **_"You're pathetic. You're just sitting there by the window, hoping against hope that she'll come back. Why don't you get up and _do something_?!"_**

Naruto didn't respond, and continued to stare out the window. After another hour of silence, Naruto got up and walked aimlessly. Naruto eventually found himself outside of the Hokage tower. After staring at it for a moment, Naruto walked inside the tower and ignored the receptionist; going straight to the Hokage's office.

When Naruto opened the door, he found Minato staring at a pile of paper larger than anything he'd ever seen. Naruto knocked on the door, and Minato's head jerked up. "Ah, Naruto, what can I do for you?"

Naruto paused in thought, when an interesting idea struck him. "I want to join ANBU."

Minato blinked. "Why?"

"I'm tired of being the useless genin who can't even save his friends," Naruto clenched his teeth in frustration. "I need to save Hikari, and I'll go to the edge of the world for that. ANBU is just the means to an end."

Minato paused in thought for a moment, and he stared at Naruto. After a moment, Minato sighed and nodded. "Alright, I'll make you an ANBU…" Minato paused again, and pulled a mask out of his desk. "Here you are, Kitsune."

Naruto blinked, "Kitsune?"

"Well, it's the perfect irony," Minato chuckled. "Also, we don't have any other masks at the moment."

Naruto looked at the mask and shrugged. "I guess I'm Kitsune…"

"Alright then," Minato took a blank piece of paper out and scribbled some stuff on it. "Give this paper to the Higurashi blacksmith, and once the order's in, I'll let you know."

Naruto nodded as he put on the mask and gave the list to the blacksmith. The blacksmith informed Naruto that it would be ready in approximately two weeks, and Naruto simply nodded his thanks. After that was done, Naruto decided to go to the ANBU training grounds so that he could learn something which _wouldn't_ be copied by a certain power-hungry Sharingan-user.

When Naruto reached a solitary area inside the ANBU training grounds, he paused; finally realizing that he had _no idea_ what to learn.

**_"Considering how catatonic you are, I'll teach you something," _**_Hitomi sighed. **"It's a style limited only to Kitsune in human form, and it can't be copied by the Sharingan."**_

Naruto continued to listen as Hitomi explained the style and its intricacies. All movements were apparently enhanced with chakra, and it took advantage of claws and a tail. Naruto began to briefly move through the stances that Hitomi explained to him; occupying himself so that he didn't think about Hikari. One of the largest differences was that the style focussed highly upon strategy, and it expected the user to be amazingly cunning.

Naruto began to move through the first kata; which made use of chakra elements. Naruto moved towards the invisible enemy, and used his hand as a claw, enhancing the attack with wind chakra to create a wind blade at the very last second. The decision to add the element in at the last second ensured that the person wouldn't be able to sense it until it was too late.

As Naruto continued to practice the kata, he felt himself relaxing, and was actually able to completely focus on the kata.

So naturally, it came as a shock when he heard a twig breaking. Naruto blinked, and found himself with a kunai by the man's neck. The man was nearly six feet tall, and he wore a mask which looked like a wolf.

"Woah!" He held his hands up in a placating manner. "Sorry about that, I didn't think anybody else would be here."

Naruto looked at Wolf for a minute, and he moved his clawed-hand back; retracting the demonic chakra to make his appearance normal again. "It's alright," Naruto quietly replied.

"So, what're you practicing?" Wolf asked.

"Taijutsu," Naruto neutrally replied.

"Ah…" Wolf paused. "Where's your tattoo?"

"I'm new," Naruto replied. "The temporary Hokage just assigned me as ANBU three minutes ago. I'm not even sure which squad I'm on."

"Huh… So, is there a reason you're training rather than finding out which squad you're on?" Wolf asked.

"I _need_ to train," Naruto responded.

Wolf cocked his head to the side. "You lost somebody during the invasion, huh?"

"Yeah," Naruto sighed, finally starting to show emotion.

"Who was it? I mean, if you don't mind," Wolf laughed nervously.

"It was my…" Naruto paused. Did Hikari ever acknowledge him as a boyfriend? Was she his girlfriend, friend, sister or acquaintance? "The woman I love."

"I'm sorry about your loss," Wolf sighed. After a brief moment of silence, he grinned behind the mask. "Alright, we're going drinking!"

"Huh?" Naruto blinked in confusion.

"The best way to get rid of your troubles is to drink!" Wolf began to drag Naruto along with him. Interestingly enough, Naruto simply followed, either not caring, or he actually wanted to drink.

"Damn…" Jiraiya muttered, from above them. "I was planning on taking him peeking."

Naruto staggered into his apartment, supported by Wolf. "Thanks," Naruto slurred.

"No problem," Wolf replied. "Can't have you sleeping on the road, can we?"

Naruto's only reply was a snore. Wolf chuckled and went out the door. Just as Wolf closed the door, he was met by Kakashi. "Is the kid alright?" Kakashi asked.

"Yeah, I think he'll live," Wolf replied.

"Thanks," Kakashi eye-smiled.

"No problem, Hatake-san," Wolf replied. "ANBU help each other out."

Kakashi nodded; inwardly confused. _'ANBU…?'_

When Wolf left the building, Kakashi frowned underneath his mask, and made his way to the Hokage tower.

_---Naruto's Mindscape---_

_ Naruto walked down the sewer's pathway, completely sober. "Hitomi," Naruto called out, stopping in front of the cage._

_ **"What?"**_

_"I need all nine-tails," Naruto solemnly replied._

To Be Continued.

* * *

**I was thinking of making him say "I need power." except that'd sound way too much like the Uke-bashing I do (Sas_uke_). Either way... *Shrug***

**Here's a little joke that I was thinking about inputting on a chapter at some point:**

Lee walked up to the girl and gave her his best grin, complete with sparkling teeth. "Hey... Do you want to feel my... youthfulness?" Lee asked in a deep voice.

**Funny, huh?**

**On another note: Poor Naruto...**

**Laterz.  
**


	14. Hope and Despair

**I'm not sure if the title's fitting, I just chose it.**

**You know, originally I wasn't even going to write this. Then, I somehow managed to get the motivation. Apparently, not everything's troublesome. Just thank god that I have willpower, mmk? I was _totally_ content to just sit in bed and dream out what'd happen next. Naturally, what I dream isn't what I write. Although it's going sorta according to plan, but not by a lot.**

**Here's your choice, alright? I'm giving you two choices, two options each:**

**Choice 1; Option1: Hikari Dies  
Choice 1; Option2: Hikari Lives  
Choice 2;Option1: They get Hikari back when it's Orochimaru vs. Tsunade + Jiraiya  
Choice2;Option2: They don't get Hikari back when it's Orochimaru vs. Tsunade + Jiraiya.**

**Note that if you choose Choice 1;Option1, I'll probably consider making it a time travel fic. I hear those are fun to mess around with. Especially considering canon completely fucking dies once you let the Yondaime live. *cackle***

***cough* You heard nothing. Darkfire, all your base are belong to us.  
**

_

* * *

---Last Time---_

"_Thanks," Kakashi eye-smiled._

"_No problem, Hatake-san," Wolf replied. "ANBU help each other out."_

_Kakashi nodded; inwardly confused. __'ANBU…?'_

_When Wolf left the building, Kakashi frowned underneath his mask, and made his way to the Hokage tower._

_---Naruto's Mindscape---_

_Naruto walked down the sewer's pathway, completely sober. "Hitomi," Naruto called out, stopping in front of the cage._

"_**What?"**_

"_I need all nine-tails," Naruto solemnly replied._

_---And Now---_

_Hitomi lifted her head and stared at Naruto for a moment. __**"What did you say…?" **__She asked, with a small hint of shame in her voice. __**'Hmm, who does he remind me of… The name starts with S, ends with Uchiha…'**_

_Naruto chuckled bitterly, "I know… I sound like a complete idiot… I just…" Naruto clenched his fist in self-loathing and disgust. "I can't just sit around and do nothing! I need to save Hikari, and I can't do it on my own!"_

_Hitomi continued to silently stare at Naruto while he ranted._

_"I would die for her!" Naruto proclaimed. "I don't care what I have to do, just…" Naruto gritted his teeth and his red eyes locked onto Hitomi's scarlet eyes. "Please… help me…"_

_Hitomi sighed, __**"No."**_

_"But-"Naruto began to protest, but he was cut off by Hitomi._

_**"I won't give you all nine tails until you can prove you're worthy,"**__ Hitomi continued. __**"Instead, you'll have to get as far as you can on your own. When I'm sure you can do no more, I'll give you all nine tails…"**__ Hitomi shook her head sadly. __**"If you fail, it'll be due to your mistakes. Keep that in mind."**_

_Naruto nodded in determination. "I won't fail," He proclaimed. Naruto nodded to Hitomi and left the mindscape without another word._

_---Outside of the Mindscape---_

Naruto jerked awake just as he heard somebody knocking on his window. Naruto clutched his temple in pain and hissed, "I am never drinking again…"

Naruto quickly walked over to his window, opening it and revealing Kakashi. "Yo," Kakashi casually greeted Naruto as he jumped inside.

"Is there a reason you're here?" Naruto asked.

Kakashi shrugged, "I've come to apologize. Since the team only has one member left, and the council won't let me take you as an apprentice, there'll be two more people on our 'team'."

Naruto clenched his hand into a fist. "Why are you apologizing? It's not your fault."

"I'm apologizing because the new additions are the Uchiha and some pink-haired girl," Kakashi supplied. He quickly left; guessing how Naruto would react.

Naruto's eyes widened, and he sat into a couch. "It hasn't been a week yet, and they replace her…? Those fucking idiots…" He began to laugh bitterly. "I bet they're thinking that with the Sharingan, he can control me if I ever get out of hand. Seriously, who would get caught by that stupid bloodline?"

_Hitomi sneezed._

Naruto blinked. "Oh, wait…"

Naruto was about to go back to sleep when he heard a knock on his door. Naruto quickly checked the mirror, and blinked when he saw the mask. Naruto hid the mask underneath his bed and quickly opened the door to reveal Shikamaru.

"Hey Shikamaru, what's up?" Naruto asked, trying to seem as normal as possible.

"We're going to Ichiraku's and the guys want to know if you're coming," Shikamaru explained.

Naruto shook his head and gave Shikamaru a small smile. "Sorry Shika, it's too troublesome."

Shikamaru grinned as he waved to Naruto. Naruto hastily closed the door and locked it. After standing by the door, Naruto sighed and plopped himself onto the couch. "This sucks…"

Naruto groaned as he stared at the door, waiting for the next person to show up and shower him with pity. After three minutes of loneliness, Naruto was quite sure that nobody else was on their way to shower him with pity. Needless to say, he was happy that at least _one _thing in his life went well.

Naruto sighed as he plopped himself upon his bed. He stared at the ceiling; unwilling to do much else. After an hour of sitting around doing nothing, Jiraiya barged through the door. "Yo, gaki, we have a mission."

"I don't care…" Naruto groaned.

"We have to go and track down one of my old team mates," Jiraiya stated; ignoring Naruto's statement. "If you go with me, I'll teach you a new jutsu."

"…"

"It was made by your father?" Jiraiya continued; fishing for a bone.

"I'll ask him to teach me," Naruto stated.

"It could kick Orochimaru's ass," Jiraiya grinned when he saw Naruto shoot out of his bed.

"When are we going?" Naruto asked.

_---Elsewhere---_

Two men wearing black cloaks decorated with red clouds were walking down the riverside. They were suddenly intercepted by two people, and all four of them stopped moving.

"You're not from this village, are you?" Asuma asked as he took a long drag on his cigarette. "Why did you come here?"

"It's been a long time… Asuma-san, Kurenai-san," The man on the right said.

"If you know us, you must be a former ninja of this village," Asuma pointed out in a no-nonsense tone.

There was silence for a few moments, and the man who had acknowledged the two of them lifted his hat; revealing himself to be Uchiha Itachi.

Asuma and Kurenai gasped, "Y-You're…"

Itachi said nothing as he unbuttoned his cloak; revealing a mesh shirt. "No doubt about it," Asuma chuckled. "Uchiha… Itachi."

"You know these people, Itachi-san?" The man on the left asked. "Then… I shall introduce myself as well."

The man removed his hat and dropped it slowly. "Hoshigaki Kisame. Pleased to make your acquaintance."

"You're not making any acquaintances here," Asuma smirked. "I'm going to eliminate you two right now."

"Itachi-san, it seems you're hated in this village," Kisame pointed out.

"I also know you," Kurenai stated. "Hoshigaki Kisame, former member of Kirigakure no Sato. You're a renegade shinobi wanted by many countries, including Mizu no Kuni for assassinating a feudal lord and sabotage, as well as various other crimes."

"You're S-Rank felons in the bingo book. Itachi, you came back to this village after what you pulled… You've got a lot of guts coming here."

"Asuma-san, Kurenai-san… Please don't get involved with my work," Itachi warned the two of them. "I have no intention of killing you two."

"That's not something a guy who killed his own clan members can say," Asuma countered. "I know you wouldn't come here without a reason… What is your purpose?"

Suddenly, all the talking stopped as Kisame took his sword from his back and hit the ground with it; causing a large cloud of dust to obscure their vision. "This person is quite annoying…" Kisame complained. "Shall I kill him?"

"It looks like we cannot leave this village without a fight… But don't overdo it," Itachi warned. "Your moves stand out too much."

"Then it's settled…" He leered at the two of them.

He lifted his bandaged sword up, and everything was still for a moment. Just as Itachi dropped his hat, Kisame attempted to diagonally slash Asuma with his sword. Asuma jumped to the side, having barely dodged the attack. Kisame brandished his large sword and brought it downwards towards Asuma; who brought his two trench knives up to block. While the two of them were attempting to overpower each other, Kurenai jumped back and formed seals. Just as she finished making seals; she seemed to blur and vanish in midair.

"_This is… a genjutsu," _Itachi thought.

Asuma gritted his teeth as Kisame began to overpower him. _"I can't believe that I'm being overpowered by just the tip of a sword… This guy is strong!"_

"My big blade Samehada…" Kisame grinned as he brought his sword backwards and managed to cut off a large amount of the skin on Asuma's left arm. "Does not slice… it shaves!"

The top portion of the bandages had been unravelled, revealing many sharp, pointy portions of the sword.

"Kurenai… You're late," Asuma chuckled.

Kisame's eyes widened as tree roots began to form and envelop him and Itachi. Out of the tree which they were tied to, Kurenai emerged with a kunai; poised to slit Itachi's throat. "This is the end!" She exclaimed, as she brought the kunai towards Itachi.

Just as the kunai was about to hit Itachi, Kurenai was enveloped within tree roots; having the genjutsu reversed on her. Itachi stared at Kurenai and deadpanned, "This level of genjutsu will not fool me."

"_A genjutsu counter!" _Kurenai thought. Itachi took his own kunai out of his cloak and pointed it at Kurenai. Kurenai bit her lip and the tree roots enveloping her receded just as Itachi ran towards her. Her pupils dilated and Kurenai ducked just as the kunai was about to hit her. Strands of black hair flew through the air. Itachi attempted to hit her with a sidekick, and she blocked by crossing both hands in front of her.

Itachi brought his foot back and doubled the strength; sending Kurenai into the water. "Kurenai!" Asuma called.

"You have no time to look away from me," Kisame admonished.

"That was pretty nice, Kurenai-san," Itachi complimented from behind her. "But…"

"This is it," Itachi heard from behind him. Itachi looked through his peripheral vision to find Kakashi standing behind him. "For you."

Kisame brought his blade down vertically; causing Asuma to dodge to the side. He continued to wildly attack Asuma, who dodged all of his attacks. Just as Asuma saw an opening, he brought one of his trench knives towards Kisame, who dodged backwards. Kisame's eyes widened when he felt his cheek warm up, and liquid to splash down it. _"What?!"_

Asuma grinned as he took a protective stance. Kisame quickly formed seals. **"Suiton: Suikodan no Jutsu! (Water Release: Water Shark Missile)" **Kakashi and Kisame yelled at the same time.

The water began to circle around, and the two missiles clashed; fighting for dominance. After a moment, the two attacks dissipated. "The same technique as mine?" Kisame asked in shock.

"Why did you come here?" Asuma asked.

"Well, I told you two to deal with them back there," Kakashi casually replied. "But you know, I got worried."

"Hatake Kakashi," Itachi stated, as he turned around.

"This is a surprise. No wonder you were able to counter my technique," Kisame complimented. "I wouldn't believe that somebody had the same eyes as Itachi if I hadn't seen it for myself. Your name was… Kakashi, the Copy Ninja."

"I'm the one who's surprised," Kakashi replied. "I saw some weird guys at the teahouse and wondered who they could be… Who would've thought they'd turn out to be Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigaki Kisame?"

"My, my… You know my name too, I'm honoured," Kisame mock-bowed. "You fought Zabuza didn't you…? I'll enjoy cutting you up!"

"Stop, Kisame," Itachi commanded. "If you fight him head on, you will suffer unnecessary injuries. Also, if we take too much time; more ninjas will arrive."

The talking stopped as Itachi took out some shuriken. Kakashi jumped back and quickly formed seals. **"Suiton: Suijinheki! (Water Release: Water Encampment Wall)"**

Just as four pillars of water shot out towards Kakashi; a wall surrounded him. _"He was fast… I couldn't even see him form the seals. Furthermore, he used the shuriken as a distraction," _Kakashi analyzed.

"Very nice, Kakashi-san," Itachi nodded. "Your eye of insight is very impressive."

Kakashi's eyes widened when he felt a kunai prodding the middle of his back. Kakashi suddenly dissipated into water; which fell into the river. Kisame's eyes widened, _"A water clone…? A mere copy ninja can use these many techniques from our village? Impressive."_

Kakashi suddenly popped out of the water and tackled Kurenai out of the way; just as a large explosion of water occurred. "Kakashi! Kurenai!" Asuma called; jumping into the large area which was still covered by the water. _"He made a Kage Bunshin explode?!"_

"Don't let your guard down," Kakashi commanded. "He's the man who became an ANBU squad leader at the age of 13."

"I'm impressed that you can use your Sharingan so well even though you are not part of the Uchiha clan," Itachi complimented Kakashi. "But your body is not a Uchiha body, which the eye needs to work best. I will show you why the clan of Uchiha was feared and reputed to be unmatched."

"_I bet Naruto would have something to say about that," _Kakashi thought, as he watched Itachi carefully.

"The Sharingan… The full power of the Kekkei Genkai," Itachi opened his eyes; revealing two pinwheels in the place of his pupils.

"_Could it be?!" _"The two of you! Don't open your eyes!" Kakashi commanded. The three of them closed their eyes, and Kakashi left his Sharingan eye open. He felt fear crawl into his stomach as he began to anticipate what this technique might do. "Don't open your eyes. Only somebody with the Sharingan can hope to survive this."

"It's true that if you have the Sharingan you can resist this Mangekyou Sharingan a little, but I have only met one person who could resist it. She had the same eyes," Itachi commented. "I'm sure you know her well, Kakashi."

_Kakashi was just about to ask Itachi what he meant; when the world began to fade away and the sky became crimson. Kakashi found himself tied to a cross. Standing in front of him was Itachi, holding a sword. "How long can somebody like you, who does not possess a Kekkei Genkai deal with this?"_

_Kakashi gritted his teeth in pain as the sword pierced his liver. For 72 hours, he felt immense pain and suffering in places better left unmentioned._

Kakashi groaned as he collapsed to all fours in the real world. "Do you still want us to keep our eyes closed, Kakashi?" Kurenai asked.

"Not…yet…" Kakashi forced himself to respond.

"What happened?!" Asuma asked. "You suddenly fell down after he stopped talking!"

Kakashi groaned as he managed to get back on his feet. "Is… Is Sasuke what you're looking for?" He asked

"No," Itachi responded. "We're after the Yondaime Hokage's legacy."

"The name of your organization is Akatsuki, isn't it," Kakashi panted.

Kisame visibly tensed at that. "Kisame, we're going to take Kakashi-san," Itachi stated. "Let's have the other two disappear."

Kisame ran towards the three of them with his sword in tow, and was about to attack; when he was kicked. "Konoha Gōriki Senpū!" Gai yelled.

"Who are you?" Kisame grinned.

"Konoha's Noble Green Beast…" Gai grinned, "Maito Gai!"

"Look at yourself before you speak," Kisame laughed. "Perhaps you meant to say a dodo."

"Do not underestimate him," Itachi coolly stated.

Kakashi suddenly collapsed, and Gai turned around to face Kakashi. He picked him up out of the water and handed him to Kurenai and Asuma. "He hurt Kakashi this much?"

"Don't look Itachi in the eyes, Gai," Asuma stated. "You'll fall into his technique!"

"I already know that," Gai replied. "In the measures I developed to fight Kakashi, I took into consideration how to counter his Sharingan! Open your eyes, you two. When you fight a Sharingan user, you don't have to look them in the eyes. Keep your eyes on their feet and predict their movement accordingly!"

"Now that you mention it that seems logical…" Kurenai sighed.

"But you're about the only guy who can do that," Asuma stated.

"There's a trick you have to learn to grasp an enemy's moves from his feet movement alone, but we have no choice! Either way, get used to it!" Gai commanded. "Kurenai, you take Kakashi to a hospital. Asuma, you cover me."

"Yosh," Asuma nodded.

"Now, until the ANBU reinforcements that I arranged for arrive…" Gai looked towards Itachi and Kisame, "we will fight them."

"Interesting… You're quite daring," Kisame grinned.

"Kisame! We're going to stop," Itachi stated. "We didn't come here to start a war. Unfortunately, fighting any more is nonsense. We're leaving."

"I was just starting to get excited," Kisame sighed. "It can't be helped."

The two of them suddenly disappeared.

_---Village Gates---_

"Yosh…" Naruto put on his backpack, which was nearly his height, "Let's go!"

Jiraiya stared in awe as Naruto managed to get the backpack to actually get off the ground without showing any visible effort. "Are you alright…?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Naruto replied. "Hi– I've done this before."

_---A Few Hours/One Episode Later---_

"Hey Ero-sennin, what kind of technique are you going to show me?" Naruto asked eagerly; trying to keep his mind off of Orochimaru's latest stunt. Naruto blinked when he saw Jiraiya stop in front of an inn.

"Naruto, we're going to stay here," Jiraiya stated.

"But–"Naruto protested

"Every good apprentice should listen to their master," Jiraiya chastised. Naruto groaned when he saw Jiraiya begin to chase after a woman. After watching Jiraiya leave, Naruto knew that there was _no way_ he'd get anything done; so he decided to just go into their room.

Naruto sighed as he sat upon the bed. _"I need to train… I have to save Hikari from that Snake bastard!"_

Naruto walked to the door when he heard knocking and opened it. Naruto looked up to see Itachi towering over him with his Sharingan on. Naruto immediately dismissed him, "Sorry Itachi, I can't play."

Itachi blinked. "Naruto-kun, how's Natsuko-san doing?"

Naruto winced. "Ask Orochimaru."

"Orochimaru…?" Itachi furrowed his brow. "What happened?"

"Yo, Itachi-san!" Kisame yelled from the end of the hallway. "Is he coming or not?"

"No," Itachi replied. Naruto caught on and jumped out of the room, doing his best to seem like an idiot.

Naruto quickly lunged towards Kisame and attempted to hit him with a knee to his face. Kisame easily moved his head out of the way and caught Naruto's knee. "It would be troublesome if he moved…"

"Leave it to me," Itachi commanded. Naruto slowly turned towards Itachi, who already activated his Mangekyou Sharingan. **"Tsukuyomi. (Moon Reader [Isn't Tsukuyomi the Moon God?])"**

_The world immediately began to fade, as the sky turned red. Itachi looked towards Naruto, who was sitting cross-legged on the ground. "What happened to Natsuko-san?"_

"_Hikari… was kidnapped by Orochimaru," Naruto clenched his hand into a fist. "She used Amaterasu to break a barrier, and he saw her…"_

_Itachi stopped Naruto, "She used Amaterasu?"_

"_Yes, why?" Naruto asked._

"_She's used her Mangekyou Sharingan too many times," Itachi replied. "I'm sure that she's blind by now."_

_Naruto's eyes widened and he immediately shot to his feet. "Isn't there anything I can do?!"_

_Itachi paused thoughtfully. "There is _one_ thing…"_

"_What is it? I'll do anything!" Naruto pleaded._

"_First, we have to rescue her," Itachi explained._

"_We…?" Naruto asked, looking up at Itachi hopefully._

"_I refuse to allow Orochimaru to get the Sharingan. It would make him far more powerful than he should be," Itachi explained. "Do you have any idea where he would be heading?"_

"_I remember completely disabling his arms…" Naruto frowned thoughtfully. "I don't think any normal medic could heal them."_

"_He's probably looking for Tsunade then," Itachi concluded._

_Naruto paused. "Why are you helping me?"_

"_Madara's treachery runs deep," Itachi answered vaguely._

"_Madara…" Naruto frowned. "Where have I heard that name before?"_

"_Uchiha Madara, the one who fought against Senju Hashirama at the Valley of the End. He stole his brother's eyes in order to remove the blindness factor from the Mangekyou Sharingan and gained a new power; dubbing his new eyes as the Eien no Mangekyou Sharingan," Itachi explained. "He later used this power to command the Kyuubi into attacking Konoha."_

_Naruto rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "So you're saying that the Uchiha clan was planning to do something like…"_

_---Flashback---_

"_The council," Itachi coolly replied, as he glanced at Naruto. He seemed to be in deep thought for a moment, before he returned his gaze to Natsuko. "You should disguise yourself. If _they_ know that both you and Sasuke are alive… You will lose any chance at a normal life."_

"_Why… Why did you do it?" Natsuko asked, nearly in a catatonic state. Naruto looked at her and reassuringly placed his hand on hers, when she began to waver._

"_I've lost all hope for this pathetic clan," Itachi replied. "They were about to launch an attack against Konoha." He imperceptibly shifted his posture when he noticed that Natsuko's anger wasn't dissolving. "To top it off, they planned to kill Naruto."_

_---End Flashback---_

_Naruto blinked. "Oh." Naruto paused briefly, "You're showing more emotion than I'd thought was possible."_

_Itachi schooled his features. "Am I?"_

"_Yeah," Naruto replied. "Either way, how are you going to help me if you're in this organization that's obviously after me?"_

"_This is the plan…" Itachi started._

Naruto grabbed his head as he came back into the real world. It felt like he'd actually spent three days in there. He watched as Itachi seemed to fall to the ground, and Kisame snorted. "Lucky for you, gaki, I guess we can't take you today."

Kisame grabbed onto Itachi and jumped out of the window. "Naruto!" Jiraiya called from the edge of the hallway. "Are you alright?"

Naruto frowned thoughtfully. "I'm alive," He replied. "Speaking of which, when did you plan on telling me that an organization is after the Kyuubi…?"

Jiraiya rubbed his head nervously, "Whenever they first made an appearance?"

Naruto's eye twitched and he glared at Jiraiya. "What would you have done if they took me, Ero-sennin?! All because you didn't think I could handle the news!"

Jiraiya winced, "Look, I'm-"

"You're sorry?" Naruto laughed bitterly. "I watched the woman I love get taken away by one of your old team mates because of a lack of warning. I'm _very_ sure that the same thing could have happened to me if I didn't get lucky!" Naruto paused thoughtfully. "Just because of that, I'm going to force you to start teaching me that new jutsu tomorrow!"

Jiraiya let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.

_---Some Time Later---_

"God, where'd he go…?" Naruto muttered. "He was supposed to train me _days_ ago!"

Naruto was about to walk past another building, when he heard a familiar laugh. Naruto blinked and looked inside, to see Jiraiya surrounded by sake and women.

"I just love the young girls," Jiraiya slurred as his goofy grin grew. **(Alliteration *cough*)**

"Oh, Naruto… Did you enjoy the festival yet?" Jiraiya asked; taking another sip of sake.

Naruto looked down at the frog wallet on the table. _"Empty…"_

"Ah, Naruto! I know, one of these women can make you a man!" Jiraiya exclaimed. Naruto immediately sobered up, and Jiraiya's eyes widened. "Ah! I mean…"

"If you have time to do this…" Naruto glared at Jiraiya, "Then you have time to train me!"

He stormed out of the place and accidentally bumped into a man wearing a white suit. Naruto blinked as the grilled squid he was holding smeared against the man's suit. Naruto shrugged and then walked away.

"What the hell?! Whatcha doing, fool?!" One of the man's partners asked. "You put a stain on Bro's brand-name suit! Pay for it! Get 100,000 ryo!"

Naruto paused mid-stride and slowly turned his head to look at them. **"What was that?" **he asked in a demonic voice; enhancing his demonic features at the same time.

The man gulped. "Y-you heard me!"

Naruto licked his lips and walked towards the two. **"You mean to tell me that stupid clothes like that cost 100,000?"**

"Yeah!" He exclaimed; gaining more confidence. "If you don't, you'll have to face Bro! Bro was a Chunin from Iwagakure no Sato and he was revered as a legendary Yaminin!"

Naruto chuckled. It nearly made the men piss their pants. **"Well, I'm an ANBU from Konohagakure no Sato… and I'm revered as the legendary Kitsune Sennin!"**

The men paled at the mention of the word ANBU. Jiraiya raised an eyebrow and wondered where he got the nickname from. Naruto grinned even more when he saw them pale. Finally, the so-called Yaminin got his nerve back. "I'll kill you!"

Jiraiya nodded. "Naruto, this is as good a time as any to show you a new jutsu. Watch."

Jiraiya intercepted the Chunin and held the palm of his hand out. Chakra began to form in it; swirling around quickly. He thrust the ball of chakra into the man's stomach, and the man began to spin and he flew back. Naruto watched carefully, noting how the man spun clockwise at first, but his momentum nearly paused at some point; indicating that it had been temporarily reversed.

The Yaminin flew through a stand, and Naruto blinked.

"Are you… The legendary…" The man croaked.

"Ah, so sorry I broke your stand," Jiraiya laughed.

"Take this for repairs…" The Yaminin held out his wallet.

"Ah, thank you. Here you are, I hope you don't mind if I take all your water balloons," Jiraiya handed the man the money, and gathered the balloons. The man was dumbfounded, and all he managed to do was nod.

Naruto blinked as he looked at the aftermath. _"I wonder how that'd look with some yoki instead of chakra…"_

Jiraiya motioned for Naruto to follow him, and the two of them went to a clearing outside of the town. "Alright, here's a water balloon," Jiraiya tossed a balloon towards Naruto. "You watched that jutsu carefully, right?"

Naruto nodded. "It seemed to output a lot of power, and rotate. I noticed that at some point the momentum was temporarily equalized before the rotation started again."

Jiraiya stared at Naruto in shock. "Gaki, I think we'll make a Hokage out of you yet…"

Naruto nearly smiled, but he shook his head. "A Hokage can protect his friends, Ero-sennin. I'm not that strong yet, so I'm not Hokage material… yet."

Jiraiya shook his head in amazement. "Anyways, you have to pop the water balloon," Jiraiya took one of the water balloons and placed it into his hand. "Like so," He began to pour chakra into it; rotating it. Naruto watched carefully as it began to randomly bulge in certain places. Finally; the water balloon popped and sprayed water all over Jiraiya.

Naruto nodded thoughtfully, and placed the water balloon into his hands. He began to do the same thing as Jiraiya, and in less than one second; the balloon popped.

Jiraiya stared at Naruto in shock. "What the…" He paused thoughtfully. "Wait, you never wore a green jumpsuit!" Naruto laughed nervously, and Jiraiya rolled his eyes, and dispelled the genjutsu. "Alright, work for _real_ this time!" Jiraiya commanded.

Naruto sighed and began to send chakra through it and rotate the water inside with the chakra. No matter how much he attempted; the balloon wouldn't burst, and Naruto finally gave a cry of frustration and threw it upon the ground.

Jiraiya simply laughed and ruffled Naruto's hair. "I'm off to _research_!"

To Be Continued.

* * *

**So, anyone wanna guess how to prevent/fix Hikari's blindness? I know the answer *cough* Yes, yes I do. I mean, it's not like I'm irresponsible enough to hope you guys know, am I?**

***crickets chirp***

**-.- No, seriously, I know the answer.**

**Anyways, let me know what you think. If you want me to kill off Hikari, Naruto will still _partially_ benefit. 50/50 that if she dies, I go all 'time travel sh1t' on you guys. Just 'cuz I had a great idea for that. (Not really, I was just gonna copy off of somebody else).**

**Give me ideas on how to get the NaruxFemKyuu. I've been thinking really hard on that. Yet I can't decide.**

**Oh, was anybody wishing I had Hitomi outright say no? I was actually thinking about it. _"No, I'm cutting off all connections with you till you realize what the hell you just did and who you sound like. Or until you're dying," Hitomi rolled her eyes and pushed Naruto forcefully out of the mindscape._**

**Something like that.**

**Laterz?  
**


	15. Finding Tsunade

**_Certain parts of this are written by Xxdarkfire9xX. T.D. asked me to aid in fixing the emotions issue that (as of this moment) Naruto-lover and Darksnider05 mentioned. First off I would like to apologize to anyone who dislikes naruto's former display of emotions, think of it this way; it is very hard to portray emotions one has never experienced. Thank you for your help in fixing this story and I once again apologize if anyone was disappointed. Thank you for reading this and have a nice day (also I'm not normally this formal)._**

**Yo! Do you have _any fucking idea_ how much it hurts to use one of those laptop touchpads (in the case that it doesn't have anything to reduce friction)? Well, know this: my finger hurts like hell.**

**Anyways, new chapter, etc, etc. It's kinda late, I know. Everything from Point A to Point C is... Point B. Simple as that :P**

**Mmk... Do I have any comments... Oh right.**

**1. Recommend some stories for me to read (I hate NaruHina. _Hate_. I would murder it if I wasn't tolerant. I dislike NaruSaku, but if you play your cards right... I like time/dimension travel, ANBU, etc).**

**2. Has my writing quality decreased? I can't tell.**

**3. I'm not sure if I'll manage the NaruxFemKyuu part. I can't think of anything plausible, and the ideas you guys give me... Well, let's not say anything about that. Basically, my largest problem: I've never written a harem. Technically this is my third real fic. The other two weren't harems. They were two-ppl-couples.**

**7. Wtf?**

**4. *cough* Enjoy!**

_

* * *

_

_---Last Time---_

_Naruto sighed and began to send chakra through it and rotate the water inside with the chakra. No matter how much he attempted; the balloon wouldn't burst, and Naruto finally gave a cry of frustration and threw it upon the ground._

_Jiraiya simply laughed and ruffled Naruto's hair. "I'm off to research!"_

_---And Now…---_

Naruto picked the water balloon off of the ground and sat down against the edge of a tree. He carefully held it in his hand, and began to concentrate on feeling the water out first. He slowly poured chakra into the ball and began to spin the water around using his chakra. He frowned when nothing happened again, and he threw it on the ground without stopping the chakra. Naruto blinked when the water balloon popped.

"It popped when I threw it on the ground and it was still rotating… maybe that's how those bulges were caused?" Naruto theorized. He took out another water balloon and began to swirl the water around with his chakra. He furrowed his brow in concentration, but frowned when nothing happened. Naruto tried again; getting the same results. "Maybe I guessed wrong…?"

Naruto stared at the water balloon for a moment. "Hang on… It had multiple bulges at a time… That means that it has to turn multiple times. Damn, now I need chakra control." Naruto sighed as he stared at the creek nearby. "Do I want to try walking on it?" Naruto blinked as he saw a bottle of sake emerge from the water and the go back down. "Probably not…"

Naruto shrugged and tried to wrack his brain for chakra control exercises which didn't involve a dirty source of water.

_---Flashback---_

_"Alright, today we're going to work on a basic chakra control exercise. You'll see more of these when you become genin," Iruka explained as he held up a leaf. "What you want to do is stick this leaf to any area on your body."_

_Iruka took the leaf and placed it on his hand. After a moment, he held his hand upside down, yet the leaf didn't fall. "As you can see, the chakra will cause the leaf to stay to your body. In the case that you use too much chakra, the leaf will be forced off. If you don't use enough chakra, the leaf will simply fall."_

_---End Flashback---_

"Huh," Naruto nodded. "That was a convenient memory."

Naruto looked at the tree above him and plucked a leaf off of one of the branches. He placed the leaf on his palm and concentrate on getting chakra to make it stick. Naruto frowned when the leaf flew 10 metres in the air and landed on the ground. Naruto tried again; getting the same results. Naruto's eye twitched as he snatched the leaf out of the air, and used both his hands to control it.

The leaf was split in two.

"Is that even possible…?" Naruto asked himself.

Jiraiya shook his head from behind a tree. _"At least he figured out the trick. Interesting that he has a wind affinity, though."_

Naruto frowned and plucked another leaf off of the tree and closed his eyes. He slowly began to send chakra towards his hand. As the chakra was moving, a bead of sweat rolled down his forehead. More and more chakra was sent towards the leaf, until…

It flew in the air again.

_"Funny how I didn't care about chakra control; assuming that I had enough chakra to outlast anybody regardless," _Naruto mused. After a moment of thought, Naruto formed a shadow clone, which picked up a leaf. The two of them began to use their chakra to try and hold onto the leaf, but they sent the leaf towards the other in case they couldn't hold it.

Naruto grinned when he managed to hold onto the leaf for a second, and he sent it back to the clone with a burst of chakra. After the clone ran out of chakra, Naruto sat on the ground and wiped the sweat off of his forehead. He picked up another leaf and tried to stick it in his hand. This time, the leaf stuck and didn't fly up. When he tipped his hand over, the leaf didn't fall down; indicating that Naruto was using the correct amount of chakra.

Naruto grinned as he picked up the water balloon and tried to make his chakra move in random directions. He bit his lip while concentrating; drawing blood with his elongated canines. Naruto frowned when only one bulge appeared, and he gently placed the balloon on the ground. Naruto took a run up a tree using his chakra, only to frown when he was pushed off. "I could've sworn I mastered…"

_---Flashback---_

_Orochimaru gritted his teeth. From the looks of it, Naruto was running a high off of demonic chakra. Meaning there was only one way to do this… Orochimaru formed seals at an amazing speed and yelled out, "**Gogyō Fūin! (Five Elements Seal)"**_

_Immediately; purple chakra formed on the fingertips of Orochimaru's right hand. Orochimaru carelessly thrust his hand towards Naruto's stomach; which extending a snake to bite Sasuke; which finished its task before Orochimaru's finger made contact with Naruto. At the exact time Orochimaru impacted his fingers onto Naruto's seal; Naruto finished his seals and yelled, **"Onipon: Kamikaze Bakuhatsu no Jutsu! (Demonic Release: Divine Wind Explosion Technique)"**_

_---End Flashback---_

Naruto's eyes widened. "Damn, I need Ero-sennin."

Naruto winced as he saw Jiraiya jump out of a tree and create a weird pose. "Behold, the divine ninja Jiraiya's… Far East of Eden's… Wild Dance!"

Naruto's eye twitched as Jiraiya continued striking pose after pose. "I need help, Ero-sennin."

"What is it, gaki?" Jiraiya asked.

"There's this seal Orochimaru put on me, the Gogyō Fūin or something…" Naruto started.

"Ah…" Jiraiya nodded. "Lift your shirt please." Naruto obliged and lifted his shirt. Jiraiya studied the seal on his stomach and frowned. "That's weird…" He murmured.

"What is it?" Naruto asked.

"Well, it looks like the seal was only partially made," Jiraiya explained. "How did he apply the seal?"

"He applied it on my Kage Bunshin the same time it exploded," Naruto replied.

Jiraiya's eyes widened. "The seal was transmitted through your Kage Bunshin? But that's…"

"Impossible isn't a word that I encounter very often," Naruto grinned.

"I guessed as much…" Jiraiya dryly replied. "So far as I can see; this seal is messing with your chakra control, and it's also… preventing something."

"Like what?" Naruto frowned.

"It's only allowing you to release a certain amount of demonic chakra," Jiraiya replied. "Hang on; I'll see if I can fix it." Jiraiya formed a few seals and the fingertips of his right hand were enveloped in blue. **"Gogyō Kaiin! (Five Elements Unseal)"**

Jiraiya thrust his hand upon Naruto's stomach, and Naruto fell unconscious and began to writhe in pain.

Naruto blinked as he awoke to an unfamiliar room. He immediately shot up to his feet, but relaxed when he noticed Jiraiya laying on a futon nearby. "Why do I feel as if I'm at peace with myself…?" Naruto muttered.

Naturally, nobody answered. Not even the lazy fox sealed within his stomach. Naruto sighed and picked up the water balloon lying on the floor, and began to concentrate. After a few seconds, the balloon began to bulge, and it soon popped; splashing water over Naruto and Jiraiya.

"Hmm?" Jiraiya mumbled. Jiraiya felt the water on his blanket and cursed, "Damn it, not another one of _those _dreams!"

Naruto blinked. "Uh, Ero-sennin, I finished the first stage…"

"Did you, gaki?" Jiraiya asked.

"I did," Naruto confirmed.

"Alright, meet me out by that tree," Jiraiya dismissed Naruto and went back to sleep.

Naruto's hand twitched towards the kunai case which was lying on the floor. After a moment of twitching, Naruto finally got dressed and went to 'that tree,' otherwise known as 'the-unofficial-training-grounds-of-doom'.

**_"The training grounds of doom?" _**_Hitomi snorted._

_"Everything _has_ to end with 'of doom'. That's just how life works," _Naruto explained. Hitomi snorted again before going back to sleep.

After waiting for 15 minutes, Jiraiya finally went to the 'training grounds of doom'. "Okay, now we'll start with the second step," Jiraiya yawned. "Here," He threw a rubber ball towards Naruto. Naruto fumbled with the ball before…Naruto caught the ball gracefully and gave a cool pose after it was successfully within his clutches. "This time, you have to pop this," Jiraiya stated; pulling out a rubber ball of his own. Jiraiya began to channel chakra through his arms, and Naruto watched as the ball quickly expanded and bulged; before violently popping open. Jiraiya smirked at Naruto's stare.

"Alright, I can do this…" Naruto muttered. He began to channel chakra through arm; having it move randomly. Naruto frowned when it simply bulged and his chakra died out.

"The first step emphasized rotation," Jiraiya held one finger in the air. "The second step emphasizes power," Jiraiya then held up a second finger. "Since there's no water inside, it's hard to imagine the rotation of chakra, so it's difficult to rotate your chakra."

Naruto nodded and stared contemplatively at the ball. "So I'd need to actually concentrate on this…"

"Exactly," Jiraiya nodded.

Naruto continued to stare at the ball, before attempting again. _"Chakra output is usually equal to pain; the more pain I feel, the more chakra I output. It's probably safe to assume that this requires a lot of chakra, and I probably haven't used enough yet. Therefore…"_

Naruto closed his eyes and tapped into his massive chakra reserves; wincing as the chakra flowed unimpeded through his hand. Eventually, the level of chakra grew, and Naruto winced as he felt the skin on his hand tearing off. Naruto prematurely stopped the flow; causing a small hole to appear in the ball and make the air leave in a hiss. "Why is my skin tearing off…?"

_Hitomi whistled innocently._

Naruto shrugged and held it in his hand; wincing when the hard rubber went on his new wounds. He closed his eyes and envisioned an empty white space; a representation of the ball's innards. Slowly, Naruto imagined water pouring into the ball, just as his chakra did. Then, once it was full to the brim, he slowly began to rotate his chakra as the 'water' in his imagination moved. Soon; it became a maelstrom and the ball could literally be seen bulging. After a moment, Naruto stopped the rotation and sent in one huge burst of chakra; causing it to explode. Naruto cried out in pain as bits of his skin went with the ball. "Fucking hell!"

"Finished already?" Jiraiya sighed. "Damn it, why do you have to be such a quick learner?"

Naruto chuckled weakly, "It's because –"

Before Naruto could finish his sentence, he collapsed to the ground. Jiraiya sighed as he took Naruto back to the room once again.

Naruto groaned as he woke up. After a moment of lying uselessly in bed, Naruto looked at his hand to ensure that it wasn't burnt. Luckily for him, it had been healed over the night, and he thus had nothing to worry about. Naruto flexed his hand experimentally and winced slightly.

"We're leaving," Jiraiya stated from a chair at the corner of the room.

"You found another lead?" Naruto asked as he rubbed his eyes. Jiraiya simply nodded in response, and Naruto sighed. "I was hoping to finish the move."

"You can do it while we walk," Jiraiya took an empty water balloon from the basket beside his table and he tossed it to Naruto after filling it up with air. Naruto caught it and gave Jiraiya what amounted to a confused look. "The third step is stability," Jiraiya explained. "You have to combine the first and second steps while still keeping it from popping."

Naruto frowned as he stared at the balloon and tried combining the two steps. He failed miserably, or so the huge explosion told him.

_---Elsewhere---_

"She's useless!" Orochimaru spat as he stared at Hikari. Hikari stared back to where she assumed him to be. "Infertile, blind, and we can't turn those eyes on without her!"

"Orochimaru-sama, I think there was a mistake," Kabuto frowned towards Hikari. "According to these records, she's a perfectly normal, albeit blind person."

"That can't be! I saw her creating that amazing fire!" Orochimaru protested.

"Let's take her to Tsunade-sama, and we can get your arms fixed at the same time," Kabuto offered.

"Fine!" Orochimaru hissed. "You're lucky you look like a delicious little boy, Kabuto."

Thus, the stories of Orochimaru, the pedophile would clash with the story of Naruto until a certain point.

_---Back with Naruto/Jiraiya---_

"This is what's happening inside the water balloon," Jiraiya explained as he formed a Rasengan on his hand.

"It's probably more stable than either step one or step two," Naruto noted.

"Exactly," Jiraiya agreed. "If you use step one and two together, it'd just fall apart in three seconds flat."

Naruto looked at the balloon, then his hand, and then a random tree. Naruto continued looking between these three for a moment, until he finally decided to try. Naruto closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He slowly began to release chakra into the balloon and rotate it, but it quickly popped. Naruto frowned as he stared at the balloon, and he tried again; getting the same results. Naruto tried it in his hand this time, noticing that it quickly dissipated. "So I need to keep the flow even, rather than starting out slowly..."

Naruto sighed as he began to work. Jiraiya tapped Naruto on the shoulder. "Do it while you're walking."

Naruto rolled his eyes and followed Jiraiya; attempting the Rasengan at the same time. After another failure, Naruto sighed. "Let's pick up the pace, Ero-sennin. If she's anything like you say, we should probably go as fast as I can."

Jiraiya nodded, "Good idea, gaki. You can set the pace."

Naruto began running quickly towards the town where Tsunade was rumored to be.

_---Elsewhere---_

"It's been a very long time, Orochimaru," Tsunade coldly greeted. The group was in an alleyway. Tsunade had a black-haired woman carrying a pig with her, and Orochimaru had Kabuto carrying Hikari with him.

"I've looked for you everywhere," Orochimaru replied with a nod.

"What do you want with me?" Tsunade scowled. "Don't tell me you want to talk about old times."

"Well, I have a small request for you," Orochimaru stated. "I need you to heal my arms, and this girl's eyes."

Tsunade warily eyed Hikari. "It's not like you to care about somebody else, Orochimaru."

"If it is in my interest then I do so happen to care. And besides if you don't treat her eyes, we'll simply treat her as breeding stock," Orochimaru casually replied. "It's in her best interest." Orochimaru inclined his head towards Kabuto, who handed Hikari to Tsunade. Tsunade carefully took Hikari from Kabuto and looked at her.

"What's in it for me?" Tsunade asked casually.

Orochimaru laughed, "I have created a jutsu that can revive the dead. If you didn't know, I've used it to kill Sarutobi-sensei. I can revive your precious Dan and Nawaki if you agree to heal the two of us. Feel free to take as long as you want to heal her."

"How do you know we won't run away?" Tsunade curiously asked.

"My 'eyes' are watching, Tsunade-hime. If you run, you'll regret it," Orochimaru cackled. "I'll await your decision in a week."

Orochimaru and Kabuto both nodded towards her and jumped onto the rooftops and made their way towards their 'evil (cough-hotel-cough) lair of doom'.

Tsunade frowned as she handed Hikari's limp body towards her black-haired companion. "Shizune, take her to the hotel and tell me what you can find out about her condition."

Shizune nodded and ran towards the hotel with Hikari in her arms. At this moment in time Naruto passed her. Naruto's eyes widened in shock and he chased after her. "Hikari!" Naruto yelled.

Shizune looked behind her, and ran faster, thinking that he was one of Orochimaru's minions taking the girl back for some odd reason. Naruto became infuriated by the women carrying his beloved running away and pumped his legs as fast as he could go.

Just as he nearly caught Shizune, Jiraiya caught the two of them by the collar of their shirts. "So, why are you running with the girl, Shizune?"

"Jiraiya-sama!" Shizune sighed in recognition. "Orochimaru gave her to Tsunade for treatment."

"Why would he do that...?" Jiraiya frowned contemplatively.

"She's blind, and it's untreatable." Naruto supplied.

"If it's untreatable, then why—"Jiraiya started.

"He assumes it can be corrected because Jiji had Hikari go through a gene modification which would make it so that it only the most talented of medics could tell she had a Kekkei Genkai," Naruto explained. "Since blindness is part of her Kekkei Genkai – which is hidden to those who aren't of Tsunade's caliber..."

"Ah," Jiraiya nodded in comprehension. "So what's going to happen now?"

"He's going to use her as breeding stock," Shizune sadly admitted.

"WHAT?!" screamed Naruto beyond the point of anger. In a fit of rage he hit Jiraiya so hard that the Sannin was forced to let go of Naruto to gather himself. He quickly stole Hikari from Shizune.

He then ran away at top speed angrily muttering about killing Orochimaru for everything he has and would do to Hikari. After he was back to his senses a concerned Jiraiya ran after Naruto. "Damn it gaki, GET BACK HERE!" Jiraiya yelled.

Running at speeds that he developed after innumerous attempts to run away from a horde of angry "test subjects" Jiraiya quickly caught up with Naruto. Rather than grabbing him by the collar this time he head butted his apprentice knocking the living daylights out of him.

Grabbing the falling Hikari he put her down next to Naruto. He then performed the summoning jutsu. With years of learning to control his chakra he got exactly the toad he wanted; a toad to carry his foolhardy apprentice and the girl.

As he placed the two on his toad Shizune caught up with them, almost out of breath. "Hey Shizune if you're tired get on the toad we should take these two back to your hotel," Jiraiya offered; thinking of what would happen if Orochimaru realized he and Naruto were here.

"I suppose your right I'll lead the way Jiraiya-sama, perhaps it would be better to get answers out of this boy if he is calm," Shizune nodded in agreement as she hopped onto the toad.

_--Later after taking Naruto and Hikari back to Tsunade's room- -_

As Naruto came to, groggily he noticed he was in a futon. "Ugh, I feel like crap…Wait…Hikari?! Where is she?!" Now fully alert he noted it he was in a room with Hikari in a nearby futon and it was around dusk.

"Relax gaki, she's okay." Said Jiraiya walking out of the shadows, when he was in clear view he continued "It's good to see you up; we were worried you wouldn't come to for another few hours.

Now much more relaxed Naruto couldn't help but ask being as a huge chunk of his memory wasn't with him. "What happened?" asked Naruto deeply confused.

"You were pissed off and took off with Hikari and for both of your safeties I had to subdue you," Jiraiya sighed. "Anyway if you would please Shizune is also here and we can't help Hikari out if she doesn't know what to do to treat her if you don't explain her illness."

"Naruto-kun I apologize for upsetting you but please continue what you were going to say." Shizune apologized as she entered the room from the shadows.

Sighing Naruto prepared himself to begin speaking when it crossed Shizune's mind _'He must be deeply troubled by this, I feel so bad forcing him to do this…'_

"Well you see it's impossible for him to use her as so called 'breeding stock' because Jiji had a seal master place some sort of seal on her so that she can't reproduce unless she's completely willing," Naruto explained.

Jiraiya blinked. "So _that's_ why Sarutobi-sensei asked for that seal..."

Ignoring that last comment Naruto continued, "Also, since her blindness is caused by Kekkei Genkai it's very likely that there's no way to actually remove the blindness."

"So her blindness can't be treated?" Shizune asked Naruto, assuming he knew everything (which he did *cough*not*cough*).

"It's actually quite interesting," Naruto said with a sigh. "It seems that it's an ocular problem. Therefore, she'd need an eye transplant. The problem is, the person who gains her eye won't be able to see... unless they can heal from just about anything."

Jiraiya's head shot towards Naruto. "That's kind of..."

"Yeah, I know," Naruto quietly laughed. "The sad thing is, you can't give the eye back after it's transplanted. I still don't understand why..." Naruto sighed. He then gently picked up Hikari. Naruto looked at her lovingly for a moment suddenly smiling.

Jiraiya stared at Naruto, wondering why he was suddenly happy. Then, he realized how Naruto was holding Hikari. _"Copping a feel while she's unconscious? That's dirty play, boy... I've taught him well!"_

Shizune watched them for a moment, and soon left the room; allowing Jiraiya and his apprentice to speak amongst themselves. After he looked towards Jiraiya, Jiraiya noticed his crimson eyes. "I'm going to kill Orochimaru..."

"Why's that?" Jiraiya asked rhetorically.

"Simple. He raped her for one, and he's trying to get Tsunade to fix her reproductive system because he knows that her eyes can't be cured," Naruto getting upset walked over to a random (poor unsuspecting) wall and punched it; putting a large dent in it.

"How do you figure that?" Jiraiya asked.

"Kabuto's a damn good medic," Naruto admitted. "The thing is, only a select few people can actually fix the reproductive system. In addition, I'm sure that it was quite obvious she wouldn't be able to actually see through her eyes judging by her retina itself. The only reason she could probably still use the Sharingan is because it uses chakra, not nerve signals."

After a moment of silence, Naruto gleefully proclaimed, "Alright, in light of today's events I've decided! I need to get hammered!" Naruto then exited the room in order to go towards the nearest Sake bar. After a moment of thought, Jiraiya followed; leaving Shizune to watch over Hikari.

Jiraiya was about to sit down at a table, when he noticed a busty blond woman in a booth near the end of the room. Jiraiya grinned, and Naruto sighed as he yelled, "Yo, Tsunade-hime!"

Tsunade groaned as Jiraiya walked towards her. "Why are you here, Jiraiya?"

Jiraiya ignored her, "I finally found you. Boy, am I tired!"

"What a day... seeing old acquaintances everywhere..." Tsunade sighed as she drank a saucer of Sake in one gulp.

Jiraiya leaned across the table and poured some sake into her saucer. After he drank it, he regarded her seriously, "Orochimaru? What happened?"

"Nothing much," Tsunade replied after a moment.

"So trying to trick you into fixing a girl's reproductive system is nothing much, huh?" Jiraiya casually asked.

Tsunade's eyes flashed with something akin to anger for a moment. "We just said hello," She reiterated.

Tsunade took out a deck of cards and began shuffling the cards. After a few moments, she placed the cards onto the table. "So what do you want from me?"

"I'll get straight to the point," Jiraiya stated as he took the deck of cards off of the table and shuffled them. After placing them on the table again, he finished his sentence, "Tsunade, the village has requested that you become Godaime Hokage." Naruto coughed loudly and choked on his Sake. He finally forced the Sake down just as Tsunade finished handing the cards to Jiraiya. "Have you heard about Sarutobi-sensei?" Jiraiya asked.

"Orochimaru killed him, right?" Tsunade asked in response. "I heard from him directly." Naruto gritted his teeth and bowed his head for a moment. Tsunade looked at him; interested by the motion. "Who is this kid?" She inquired.

"Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto," Jiraiya replied. Tsunade's head shot up, and her eyes widened in shock. After a moment of silence, Jiraiya took another card and smirked, while Tsunade narrowed her eyes. "I'll say it again," Jiraiya repeated, "The council wants you to become the Godaime Hokage. So, what's your reply? Will you accept the job?"

After a long pause, Tsunade replied, "Not possible. I refuse."

Jiraiya smirked in response. "I remember that line. I asked you to date me a long time ago. You said the same thing and turned me down."

"You never said anything about her becoming the Hokage," Naruto commented.

Jiraiya was quiet, and Tsunade smirked. "Jiraiya, your student is uglier than the previous one."

Naruto's eye twitched. "What did you say...?"

"It's hard for anybody to beat Minato in that field," Jiraiya laughed. "His capabilities as a ninja were unrivalled in history."

Naruto chuckled lightly. "That's the thing, Ero-sennin. His capabilities were unrivalled in _history_. Besides, history is biased. It only records those who use their capabilities enough to become popular figures."

Jiraiya grinned.

"Yet even he died early," Tsunade scoffed. "He threw his life away for the village. Life isn't like money. Only an idiot bets his life so easily." Naruto narrowed his eyes and his hand began to tremble in rage. "My grandfather and the Nidaime wished to end the war," Tsunade smugly continued, "but they wasted their lives instead."

"You've changed Tsunade," Jiraiya somberly commented.

"I'm in my fifties even if I look like this," Tsunade smiled. "Time changes people. Sarutobi-sensei is the same. If an old man tries to act brave, of course he'll die."Naruto's fist turned white from the pressure he was applying. "The title of Hokage is a piece of crap," Tsunade commented. "Only an idiot becomes one."

Naruto smashed his fist on the table. "Anybody who makes fun of the Yondaime or Jiji... deserves a punch to the face!" Naruto proclaimed loudly. Tsunade duly noted his crimson eyes and fangs.

"You've got guts to say that to me," Tsunade replied. "Step outside, kid."

Naruto become even more infuriated when he looked at her expression. The two of them stepped outside, and Hitomi had to forcefully sever her connections with him to prevent him from completely transforming.

"Even though I look like this, I'm one of the Sannin," Tsunade smugly commented. "There's no need for me to get serious with a genin. One finger is all I'll need. Come on little boy..."

Any words she had were quickly cut off when Naruto appeared in front of her and threw a punch towards her face. Tsunade seemed surprised for a moment, but simply poked his fist with her finger; sending him back. Naruto was about to send another fury-induced punch, when he realized something. _"If I fight like a fool, I'll end up like one..." _"I might be a genin, but at least I'm not some narrow-minded fool stuck in the past," Naruto shot back.

"You don't know what I've gone through, kid," Tsunade waved him off.

"Really?" Naruto asked sarcastically. "So you mean to tell me you've been beaten up by nearly half the ninja force and civilians? You mean to tell me that you've been kicked while you're down, told you're scum, and been left _to cry in your own blood?!_" Naruto laughed, "Unlike you, I don't care about the crap that happened to me. I'm going to become Hokage, because... Being Hokage is my dream!" Naruto proclaimed.

Naruto attacked her head on again, and she scoffed as she hit him with her finger. She laughed when Naruto went through a wall; only to stop in surprise when he vanished in a puff of smoke. Tsunade looked around for Naruto, and was surprised when she couldn't even sense his presence. Before she could even move, she heard Naruto shout, "Rasengan!"

Tsunade's eyes widened in shock as Naruto missed due to the instability of the Rasengan. Naruto groaned in pain when his head hit the ground. "Jiraiya, are you the one who taught him the Rasengan?" Tsunade asked.

"I'm his teacher after all," Jiraiya replied.

"Only you and the Yondaime can use that technique. Are you just acting like a teacher and teaching him something he can't master?" Tsunade scoffed. "Don't give him any ideas! That's why this kid likes to daydream that's he's going to be Hokage one day."

"I'm not daydreaming!" Naruto yelled. "I can master this move in three days!"

_"I somehow don't doubt him..."_ Jiraiya mused.

"You said it, kid," Tsunade smirked. "A man never takes back his words."

"I'm not going to take back my words," Naruto replied. "That's my nindo."

"Then let's make a bet," Tsunade grinned. "I'll give you one week. If you can master that move within that time, I'll acknowledge that you can become Hokage. I'll even give you this necklace." Naruto's eyes widened when she pointed to the necklace. "But if you can't master the move within one week... you lose. Then I get _your_ necklace."

Naruto frowned as he absentmindedly fingered the crescent necklace. It wasn't very masculine, but it _was_ the first birthday gift he'd ever gotten... "Fine, you're on!" Naruto proclaimed. Tsunade smirked and walked away.

To Be Continued.

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**Most of her lines are stolen from the actual episode. That's what I do with characters the first time around. Anyways, how'd you like it? We get Hikari back, we figure out my plan to relieve her of her blindness, and all is good.**

**BTW: Not everything is realistic. Half of what I write is bullshit'd. 'Cuz that's how I roll.**

**Uhh do I have anything else to say...?**

**Ah, I guess not. Laterz!**

**NO WAIT!**

**Do you want your Sasuke-teme fried, dead, soggy, or alive? (It can be combinations e.g. Fried alive. Epic.)**


	16. Fighting Orochimaru

_Lacks the T.D. Seal of Approval :(_

**Alright, I've realized that school has to be my #2 priority (Anime is #1. Always) if I want to get to where I need to be in life. Thus, when school starts, I'm going to slow my release time even more. If anybody wants to adopt this fic, I'll let you, but if nobody chooses to do so; I'll continue writing it, albeit at a slower speed. I just thought you'd want to know that option's available.  
**

**That said... I know this is a little late, but I've been trying to decide what to do with this chapter for a while. First I thought it'd be all training, then I thought it'd be straight out fighting, then I thought... yeah, etc, etc.**

**Hmm... What to rant about... Oh right, betrayal sucks. Yup.**

**What else...? Ah! _I want SnSIII!!!_ Alright, anyways....  
**

**In this chapter, we find out that somebody's plotting against him, and we fight Orochimaru. Among other stuff.**

**Enjoy! :D  
**

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* * *

---Last Time---_

"_Then let's make a bet," Tsunade grinned. "I'll give you one week. If you can master that move within that time, I'll acknowledge that you can become Hokage. I'll even give you this necklace." Naruto's eyes widened when she pointed to the necklace. "But if you can't master the move within one week... you lose. Then I get __your__ necklace."_

_Naruto frowned as he absentmindedly fingered the crescent necklace. It wasn't very masculine, but it __was__ the first birthday gift he'd ever gotten... "Fine, you're on!" Naruto proclaimed. Tsunade smirked and walked away._

_---And Now---_

Naruto groaned as a large spiral was carved into the wood by his chakra. Naruto was breathing heavily as he stared at the tree through his bangs. His eyes held nothing short of pure determination and animosity. Naruto collapsed and winced as his heavily calloused hands hit the soft ground. Shizune watched in concern from behind one of the trees as Naruto pushed himself up to try again. After another failed attempt, he barely managed to restrain his anger and pummel the tree himself. As Naruto attempted to catch his breath; he turned to face her. "Is something wrong, Shizune-san?" Naruto asked between laboured pants.

"Uh..." Shizune pursed her lips. "Tsunade-sama wants to know when you're ready to get the transplant done..."

Naruto nodded, "How about in 4 days?"

"That should be fine," Shizune replied. "Good luck, Naruto-san," Shizune bowed and went to inform Tsunade.

Naruto stared at the same tree he'd been working on. "I should be able to do this..."

Naruto groaned as he suddenly staggered and had to use his hand to support himself. Finally, Naruto looked at the tree with sheer determination etched upon his visage. He knew that this would be the last try. Naruto slowly moved his right hand up and the world seemed to slow down. A blue ball formed within his hand and began to spin erratically. Naruto furrowed his brow in concentration and thrust his hand towards the tree. Just as his hand hit the tree; time seemed to pass normally again, and he managed to get his hand halfway through the tree before it exploded. Naruto flew back from the sheer force exerted; slipping into blissful unconsciousness.

Jiraiya sighed from atop one of the trees. "That kid never gives up, huh?" He mused. "I've had too many pigheaded students over the years..."

Jiraiya chuckled lightly as he picked up Naruto and took him back towards the inn which they were currently staying in. From atop another tree, Orochimaru cackled, "Everything is going according to plan... perfect..."

_---6 Days Later---_

Naruto groaned as he awake. He brought his hand upwards to rub his eyes, but frowned when his other hand batted it away. Naruto tried again; getting the same results. At that point, Naruto gave up and looked in the mirror to notice that one of his eyes had changed.

Previously, both his eyes had been a shade of electric blue. At the moment; however, his left eye had a red iris, and the pupil was in the shape of a slit. Naruto blinked to make sure he wasn't seeing things, and frowned. After looking at his new eye for a moment, Naruto simply walked to where Jiraiya and Tsunade were drinking. Jiraiya raised a hand to greet Naruto, "Ah, Naru–"

Naruto cut him off by taking Jiraiya's bottle of sake and downing it whole. Tsunade winced visibly when she saw that. _"Damn, now he's taken it... Wait, that means I'll actually win a bet!" _She pondered mentally.

Jiraiya blinked. After he got his wits back he jumped up and pointed at Naruto. "You didn't have to steal my sake!"

Naruto stared at Jiraiya for a moment, and Jiraiya made the mistake of staring into Naruto's new eye. Suddenly, the two of them were pulled into a new landscape in which the sky was red, and clouds were a shade of orange.

_"What the hell?!" Jiraiya exclaimed when he noticed he was tied to a cross. He eyed Naruto speculatively. "You aren't going to crucify me, are you?"_

_Naruto frowned contemplatively._ _'Where am I...?'_

_---Flashback---_

"_Leave it to me," Itachi commanded. Naruto slowly turned towards Itachi, who already activated his Mangekyou Sharingan. __**"Tsukuyomi. (Moon Reader)"**_

_The world immediately began to fade, as the sky turned red. Itachi looked towards Naruto, who was sitting cross-legged on the ground._

_---End Flashback---_

_'So it's something like what Itachi managed. That means that I got an eye transplant while I was asleep,'__ Naruto concluded. 'How long did it last with Itachi...? Something like 72 hours? Oh, this'll be fun...'_

_Naruto turned towards Jiraiya with a grin which chilled Jiraiya to the very core. "For the next 72 hours, you will be forced to watch chick-flicks. If you complain, you'll be tortured for three hours. If you don't complain, you'll be beaten by Tsunade for the last 24 hours."_

_"No! Anything but that," Jiraiya sobbed._

As soon as the two of them exited Tsukuyomi; Jiraiya could be seen crying on the ground. "Don't leave!"

"Jiraiya? Are you okay?" Tsunade asked. She attempted to approach Jiraiya, but he backed up in fear.

"No! Stay away!" He cried. Naruto burst out laughing at the scene, and Tsunade turned speculatively towards Naruto.

"What'd you do?" Tsunade asked.

Naruto shrugged, "I abused my power."

Tsunade looked between Naruto and Jiraiya; trying to figure out the connection between what had just happened, and what he'd just said.

Naruto walked away with a sigh, and went back to training. Whenever he tried to form a Rasengan, he'd feel a sharp pain in his hand; causing him to stop his attempts. Naruto noticed that as he began to move more and more; he was becoming sluggish. Naruto's eyes widened in shock and he moved back to the inn as quickly as he could. Just as Naruto began to move; there was a puff of smoke and Kabuto appeared in front of him.

"Hello Naruto-kun," Kabuto greeted as he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

"Kabuto," Naruto warily nodded; attempting to move past him.

"I'm going to have to ask you to come with me, Naruto-kun," Kabuto stated.

"I'm going to have to say no," Naruto replied.

Naruto was nearly at the inn when Kabuto reappeared in front of him. "That wasn't a request, Naruto-kun. It was an order."

Naruto gritted his teeth. _"Sluggish movements, inability to draw chakra... I know that to break a chakra prevention seal you'd have to overload it, so I assume that poison is the same. Apparently my natural immunity isn't enough for this," _Naruto sighed, "You're in no position to give me orders, Kabuto."

"On the contrary," Kabuto smirked. "You're in no condition to move."

Naruto chuckled lightly. _"This is going to hurt like hell."_

In a second, Naruto had literally ripped three tails of chakra and flooded his nerve pathways with pain. For a second, all he could feel was pure agony. As he moved onto all fours; he noticed the pain was dulling, but not enough to allow him full control over himself. Kabuto's eyes widened as Naruto lunged recklessly towards him.

Naruto snarled as he missed Kabuto; who kept on smirking. "I see you've overcome one of your problems, Naruto-kun. Still, I'm afraid that's not going to be enough to beat me."

Naruto simply growled in response as a shroud of black yoki began to surround him. Kabuto's smirk disappeared as two tails of black yoki emerged from the shroud and began to move towards him.

"Even now, you have to rely on the Kyuubi's powers," Kabuto taunted. "You're nothing but a talentless kid who's in over his head."

Naruto roared as he managed to trap Kabuto within a tail, which began to severely burn Kabuto. Kabuto shrieked in agony as his skin began to burn and fall off. Kabuto managed to endure it for long enough to Shunshin out of the way, and he regarded Naruto far more warily than earlier.

Naruto growled as he stared at Kabuto. _"I have to get control..."_

Naruto struggled as the shroud of black yoki became red. Kabuto sighed in relief as Naruto stood up. "You're screwed," Naruto proclaimed as he threw two kunai towards Kabuto. Kabuto easily dodged the two kunai and laughed; only to be shocked when the kunai turned into Naruto and managed to attack him.

Naruto grinned as he threw another round of kunai, which Kabuto warily reflected this time; assuming them to be clones as well. As soon as the kunai were thrown; Naruto moved at an immense speed and startled Kabuto; managing to easily kick his opponent in the chin and send him flying back. Kabuto flipped and landed easily, as he eyed Naruto again. Finally; Kabuto formed seals and concentrated chakra to his hands.

Naruto blinked as he noticed the actual movement of chakra and how it had been directed by the seals themselves. _"So this is the power of the Sharingan..."_

Kabuto let Naruto charge him, and ducked backwards when Naruto sent a punch towards his head. Just as Kabuto started to come up; Naruto retracted his hand and swiftly brought it down as he would a hammer. Just as Kabuto managed to block, he found another one of Naruto's fists coming down towards him; one which he couldn't block.

Kabuto frowned and sent his palm towards Naruto's chest, and his eyes widened. Naruto jumped back quickly; as Kabuto began to heal himself. Naruto was about to attack again, when Kabuto frowned. "Well, Naruto-kun, it seems I have to go now..."

Naruto lunged at Kabuto just as he disappeared in a swirl of leaves. Naruto stared at the spot previously occupied by Kabuto as the yoki was retracted. Naruto coughed into his hand and stared at the blood which shouldn't have been there. Naruto frowned as he coughed again; releasing more blood. His eyes widened and he staggered to the inn as quickly as he could. By a stroke of luck, Naruto was intercepted by Shizune who healed his wounds.

"How'd you get those wounds?" Shizune casually asked.

"I ran into a traitor," Naruto grimaced. It was a well known fact that he hated traitors who were unjustified.

"I see..." Shizune frowned. "How are you doing with your training?"

"I'm almost done," Naruto weakly boasted. Shizune smiled softly.

"I hope you don't hold Tsunade-sama's behaviour against her... It's just—" Shizune started; only to be cut off by Naruto.

"Just because she's haunted by her past doesn't mean she can't turn to the present," Naruto cut her off. "That's what I'm going to prove to her."

Shizune smiled again, "Well then, I wish you luck, Naruto-san."

Naruto chuckled, "Luck is one thing I don't need, Shizune-san."

_---The Next Day---_

"Yo, gaki, wake up," Jiraiya kicked Naruto.

"Damn it Ero-sennin, do you want another Tsukuyomi?" Naruto growled.

Jiraiya visibly paled. "Ah, no... It's fine..."

Naruto chuckled. "Anyways, what's wrong?"

"Tsunade-hime left a while back," Jiraiya replied. "She didn't take your girlfriend, but..."

Naruto frowned. "Where do you think she'll be?"

"I'll show you the way. Come on," Jiraiya jumped out of the window with Naruto in pursuit.

The two of them soon reached a battlefield littered with holes and dead snake carcasses. Naruto took a moment to admire the dead snakes; as indicated by his whistle. "I get the feeling we could make a lot of money if we just took all of these snakes and skinned them..."

Jiraiya chuckled, "I'm sure that's true. Still, we have to go under the assumption she's fighting Orochimaru."

Naruto growled at the mention of Orochimaru. "He's _my_ kill, Ero-sennin."

"Naru–" Jiraiya tried to reason with him.

"No," Naruto cut him off. "He kidnapped Hikari, tried to kill Jiji, and brought dead souls back to life. It's best for the world if he dies right now."

Jiraiya frowned. "If I see you're losing; I'm taking over."

Naruto chuckled darkly. "I guess you'll be pretty bored then."

The two of them soon reached the battlefield where Tsunade and Shizune were facing off against Orochimaru and Kabuto.

Orochimaru cackled when he saw Naruto, "Kukuku, the frog and the fox are here."

"Orochimaru..." Naruto glared at him. **"I'll kill you!"**

Naruto began to emit red yoki. His nails began to turn into claws, and his teeth all became sharpened. In addition; both of his eyes became red and had slits for pupils, compared to simply one eye having said properties.

Orochimaru watched in morbid curiosity as the yoki began to form a demonic cloak around Naruto and his skin started to bubble. Naruto bared his teeth at Orochimaru as he descended on all fours and four red tails grew out of the cloak.

In a red flash; Naruto had already moved towards Orochimaru and shot a punch at him. Orochimaru moved to the side and quickly coughed up a sword. Just as Naruto brought a clawed hand forward; Orochimaru easily blocked it with his sword. Naruto glared at Orochimaru and formed a few hand-seals. **"Katon: Gekidou! (Fire Release: Fury)" **Naruto roared.

Orochimaru watched in curiosity as Naruto brought a hand up and encased it within a purple flame. From his position, Orochimaru could feel the heat emanating off of the flame and he made a mental note to block and attack from the blond boy.

Naruto roared as he attempted to pounce on Orochimaru and claw him to shreds; only to attack a log. Naruto looked around for Orochimaru; unable to find the snake-reincarnate. Naruto formed another set of hand-seals and roared, **"Katon: Gōkakyu no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique)"**

As soon as Naruto finished; he brought his hand up and released the fire using his hand rather than his mouth.

This change had two main effects.

The first effect was that it was released in a constant stream which would only stop when he stopped feeding it chakra.

The second effect was that it was far larger since there was no real container.

These two factors made it much worse for Orochimaru when Naruto released his immense stream of fire into the area in front of him. Orochimaru cursed as he countered the technique with a water attack and was forced to attack Naruto.

Orochimaru ran towards Naruto with his sword (which he wielded with his mouth) and began to attack him recklessly; swinging his sword around and attempting to decapitate him.

Meanwhile, Jiraiya had incapacitated Kabuto in an elaborate display of toads and swamps.

Naruto growled as he caught the sword and sent a burst of lightning chakra down the blade; causing Orochimaru's lips to twitch uncontrollably.

Naruto grinned as he formed a single hand seal and his right arm lit up into a flame which was nearly black. Naruto looked at Orochimaru with pure malice evident within his eyes. Just as Naruto pounced towards Orochimaru; Orochimaru held up the sword and impaled Naruto in the stomach.

Naruto coughed up blood as he looked at the sword. Orochimaru made a move to take it out of him, but Naruto quickly grabbed the sword and pulled himself forward.

Orochimaru's eyes widened and he tried to move away; to find that his legs were gripped firmly by Naruto. Naruto chuckled darkly as he quickly tied Orochimaru's legs with ninja wire.

Even as Naruto moved; he could feel his life slipping away, and he knew that this move would end it all. The entire world seemed to slow down as Naruto held out his right hand and a large ball of pure yoki began to form within it. Naruto grinned as he saw the recognition within Orochimaru's eyes.

"No!" Orochimaru yelled. "I won't die!"

Naruto's grin grew as he thrust the red Rasengan towards Orochimaru. **"Yōko Rasengan! (Demon Fox Rasengan)"**

Orochimaru grunted against the force that the attack was causing, and he attempted to ward it off using his body alone. As time trickled on, beads of sweat rolled off Naruto's forehead, and Orochimaru felt his body giving way to the Rasengan.

Naruto grunted as Orochimaru pulled the sword out of his stomach, and the pain caused his Rasengan to give way; blowing the two of them back. Naruto was caught by Jiraiya, who handed him to Tsunade. "Take care of him," Jiraiya ordered. By then, Orochimaru had undone his bindings.

Tsunade stared at Naruto with conflicting emotion. _"He's... Blood... I have to..."_

Shizune was already attempting to save him by healing him, but she was having trouble. "Tsunade-sama!" Shizune called.

Tsunade was still in a small trance, staring at Naruto in something akin to fear. _"Blood..."_

"Tsunade-sama! Snap out of it!" Shizune yelled. Tsunade continued to stare at Naruto, before coming to a conclusion.

"Well Orochimaru, looks like my apprentice did his job," Jiraiya gloated.

"Lucky shot," Orochimaru scoffed. Jiraiya watched as Orochimaru opened his mouth to a great length and coughed himself up.

Jiraiya blinked. "That's disgusting."

"To the uneducated masses; genius is always disgusting," Orochimaru sighed.

"No, it's just disgusting," Jiraiya repeated.

Orochimaru rolled his eyes and thrust his sword towards Jiraiya, who easily dodged. After a minute of fighting evenly; the two of them summoned their respective bosses.

**"Jiraiya, what is it?" **Gamabunta asked.

"We have to deal with a snake," Jiraiya replied; indicating Orochimaru.

**"Manda, huh?" **Gamabunta laughed. **"I guess now I can make that snakeskin wallet."**

The two boss summons rushed each other and began to fight. Every time Manda tried to get close to Gamabunta, he'd use his dagger. After a particularly lucky shot; Gamabunta managed to cut Manda across his side.

**"Orochimaru, you better be prepared for punishment next time we meet," **Manda hissed as he disappeared in a puff of smoke; leaving Orochimaru standing alone. Orochimaru sneered at them.

"Next time we meet, you'll die," Orochimaru threatened as he fled. At that exact moment, Kabuto managed to get away by using Shunshin no Jutsu.

Jiraiya breathed a sigh of relief and he turned back towards Naruto. "How's he doing?" He asked Tsunade.

"It's up to him now," Tsunade sombrely replied. Jiraiya took a brief note at the fact that she had no necklace, and smiled.

"So you're coming back with us then?"

"It's not as if I have a choice," Tsunade replied.

To Be Continued.

* * *

**Uh... That was short... Yeah, the fighting scene was redone. I first decided to make him to the Kirin, then I decided to make him make a tornado, then I realized that was way too powerful...**

**I also edited a little bit of it when I found some flaws.**

**Naruto has the Mangekyou in one of his eyes (The Tsukuyomi side of the Mangekyou) but can't completely control it, so it works randomnly. That's why he didn't use it as much. BTW: If you couldn't tell, he copied Kabuto's chakra scalpel. Woot.**

**Yeah, still, I'm not sure if this is going in the direction I wanted it to go... That's the problem with letting the story drive itself. (Technically I forgot where I wanted it to go, but... meh.)**

**Hmm, maybe I should make Orochimaru go against Madara... Let's see how good he is with seals *hint hint*.**

**Oh wait, I announced that you can adopt this story if you want. Mind you, I'm still writing if nobody chooses to adopt it. Wait, didn't I already say that?**

**Alright either way. Sorry for the lateness, shortness, and mistakes. I've been preoccupied with life.**

**Laterz.**

**_Brainsssssss_  
**


	17. Retrieving an Ungrateful

**So... How've you been for the last 1-2 weeks?**

**Yeah, I know it's late. I don't really care that much. I mean, it's not as if I'm super-lazy and couldn't actually get myself to sit down and write until today... *cough***

**Anyways, yeah. Sasuke Retrieval. Title: Retrieving an Ungrateful... (Bastard, Idiot, Bitch, Arrogant S.O.B.; your choice). I planned on making it two chapters, but then I realized that'd be too much work. So, I _kinda_ skimped on the fights. At least we actually get somewhere? Anyways, your choice: Do we have the timeskip next chapter or a few chapters later? I'm still trying to decide.**

**Enjoy-ish?  
**

* * *

_---Last Time---_

"_Next time we meet, you'll die," Orochimaru threatened as he fled. At that exact moment, Kabuto managed to get away by using Shunshin no Jutsu._

_Jiraiya breathed a sigh of relief and he turned back towards Naruto. "How's he doing?" He asked Tsunade._

"_It's up to him now," Tsunade sombrely replied. Jiraiya took a brief note at the fact that she had no necklace, and smiled._

"_So you're coming back with us then?"_

"_It's not as if I have a choice," Tsunade replied._

_---And Now---_

_**"What would you do for Naruto's life?" **__The giant fox casually asked._

_The black-haired woman stared unflinchingly at the fox. "Anything."_

_The fox let out a booming laugh at the girl's reply, __**"Very well then. I hope you enjoy my parting gift."**_

_The girl only had one second in which to register confusion before the fox disappeared, and she was left with no recollection of the past few days._

_**'Black chakra, huh...?' **__The fox thought as it began to fade. __**'It's been eons since I've seen such a color...'**_

_---Approximately 5 Weeks Later; Sasuke Retrieval Arc---_

"Naruto, Hokage-sama wants to see you," Shikamaru relayed to Naruto, who was staring at Shikamaru from the doorway.

"I wanted to sleep," Naruto yawned. "Alright, wait a minute."

Shikamaru nodded and waited outside of Naruto's apartment while he changed. _"This is where Naruto lives? There's a lot of graffiti..."_

"Alright, let's go!" Naruto whooped enthusiastically as he munched on his nin-crack enhanced pocky.

_**"Why does he still have that packet...?"**_

"Troublesome," Shikamaru sighed as they walked towards the Hokage's office.

On the way there, Naruto was reminded about how much Minato loved to prank people.

_---Flashback---_

_Naruto blinked as the Kitsune mask was engulfed in fire that shifted to form the word "Psyche"._

_---End Flashback---_

"What's up, Obaa-chan?" Naruto greeted as he threw open the door and casually plopped himself onto the sofa. "Did Hikari get released from the ICU yet?"

Tsunade's eyebrow twitched and she had to consciously stop herself from forming a fist. "You have a mission," Tsunade stated. "Uchiha Sasuke has left for Oto in the presence of 4 unidentified shinobi. Your mission is to retrieve him if possible, and kill him otherwise."

Naruto immediately straightened up. "What kind of people will we get?"

Tsunade sighed, "You're allowed to take as many genin as you want, but we can't spare any Chûnin or Jōnin. Shikamaru will be in charge with you as the secondary commanding officer."

Naruto grinned, "So the favoured Uchiha defected from Konoha, and he only gets one Chûnin to bring him back? That's hilarious!"

"Yes, well, like I said. We can't spare anybody greater than genin," Tsunade coolly replied.

"Alright then, let's go Shika," Naruto beckoned for Shikamaru to leave; which he did after a sloppy bow.

"So, what's the deal with your eye?" Shikamaru asked in curiosity when they left the tower.

"Oh, nothing much," Naruto dismissed Shikamaru. "On a mission, my eye was slashed and my dying comrade gave me his Sharingan eye... No wait, that's somebody else's story," Naruto blinked. "One of my comrades became completely blind and I gave that comrade my right eye. It simply changed after it was implanted."

"So you only have one working eye?" Shikamaru asked.

"Nah," Naruto shrugged. "I'm a _really _good healer."

"That's a troublesome story," Shikamaru stated. "Who do you think we should get?"

Naruto frowned thoughtfully. "I think we should get Lee, Kiba and Neji."

"I think we should get Choji," Shikamaru offered. "I'll go get him while you get those three."

_---One Hour Later---_

"So the Uchiha finally defected?" Kiba laughed.

"It would seem so," Neji replied. "Fate will get us through."

"His flames of youth must be rekindled!" Lee yelled enthusiastically. The four people present cringed; while the gate guards pretended not to see them.

"So, are you all ready to go?" Shikamaru asked once he'd arrived.

"Akamaru and I are ready," Kiba replied.

"Fate decrees that I am ready," Neji stoically replied. Naruto stared pointedly at Neji.

"You do realize that fate doesn't control everything, right?" Naruto asked worriedly.

"Indeed," Neji replied with a nod. "Though it is quite possible to assume that fate has some impact upon the world."

"My flames of youth burn brightly!" Lee proclaimed.

Naruto sighed, "I guess I'm ready."

"We'll move in a single-line formation. Kiba, you take the front, and I'll be behind you. Behind me is Lee, followed by Naruto, Choji, and Neji," Shikamaru ordered. "Are there any objections?" Shikamaru waited a few moments for somebody to respond, and finally nodded. "Alright, let's –"

"Wait!" Sakura shrieked from behind them. Naruto casually turned around and noted her puffy eyes and the veins showing beneath her cornea.

"I heard about it from Hokage-sama," Shikamaru stated. "Sorry, but I can't take you on this mission. Not even you could convince Sasuke, right? Therefore, all we can do is use force to bring him back. Sakura, your job is done."

Sakura bowed her head in shame. _"It doesn't _seem_ like a stupid crush to me," _Naruto mused. "So you spoke with Sasuke, then?"

Tears began to fall from Sakura's eyes once again, and she looked at Naruto. "Naruto... this is the only favour I'll ask for you," She gasped between breaths. "Please, bring Sasuke back... I know he sees you as a rival... You're the only person who he might listen to... Just... Please!" Sakura begged.

Naruto sighed, "Well, there's no choice now, is there?" Everybody looked at Naruto in shock. "I guess I'll just have to bring him back alive."

Naruto brought his thumb forward in an overly showy gesture and gave a grin; complete with the 'pinging' teeth.

Sakura burst into tears again. "Thank you," She sobbed.

"He gave the nice guy pose," Lee nodded appreciatively.

_"Why do I get the feeling that this'll just kick me in the ass later on?" _Naruto asked himself. "It's alright," Naruto nodded.

Without further ado, the six of them jumped off to retrieve Sasuke. After a few hours; their first obstacle came in the form of a heavily injured team. "Help..." One of them murmured.

"Go ahead without me, Shika," Naruto commanded.

"But—"Shikamaru protested.

"I'll be back in a few minutes. Just go," Naruto interrupted him. Shikamaru nodded and the five people went off without him.

"So, what happened?" Naruto asked.

"Four bastards from Oto got us," The leader said; hissing in pain.

"Which direction did they go in?" Naruto asked.

"They went that way," The man pointed in the direction that the group had just headed.

"Alright, thanks," Naruto thanked them. He quickly made a few seals and bit his thumb; thrusting it upon the floor. In a puff of smoke; a large toad appeared. "Gama-san, could I ask you to take them to Konoha?"

"Of course," The toad responded. The men limped their way onto the toad, and the toad began to jump towards Konoha.

Naruto grinned and formed a seal. A moment later; he appeared behind Shikamaru; who jumped in surprise. "What the hell was that?!" Shikamaru demanded.

"It was a simple technique," Naruto shrugged. He winked at Gamakichi who'd just emerged from Shikamaru's vest, and handed Gamakichi a treat. "Thanks, Kichi."

"I wondered why I smelled a toad," Kiba snorted.

"I use what works," Naruto shrugged. "Anyways, there was just a battle. Two of them were critically injured, but we're going in the right direction."

"That means that they're going to be alert," Shikamaru observed. "If you find anything suspicious, don't just dodge it; interpret it."

"They can be as alert as they want to be," Naruto snorted. "I'll just give them a couple thousand shadow clones to deal with."

The rest of the group chuckled. "Yosh! If we don't catch up to them in two hours, I'll climb the Hokage monument with one hand! If I can't do that, I'll-"

"We get it," Kiba interjected. After a few more moments, Kiba alerted them, "The enemy's scent is all over the place!"

"Must be a trap," Shikamaru sighed. "Troublesome..."

The five of them stopped and Naruto sighed. "Alright, it's my turn to shine!"

"What—" Shikamaru started to ask. Naruto shushed him and quietly created a clone; which went in and set off the trap.

Naruto whistled lowly when the entire clearing exploded in a brilliant show of colors. "That was nice..." Naruto observed. "Well, I suppose I've gotta one-up that."

"I don't want to know how..." Neji sighed.

Naruto simply grinned in response and held out his palm. A large blue flame was formed within his palm, and it began to compress into a small area. Naruto simply chuckled as the color of the flame changed to purple, and he threw it far beyond the area which had just exploded. The group, sans Naruto, gaped as the flame began to expand in midair and it soon engulfed the entire area.

"Alright, that was all fine and dandy, but..." Kiba paused. "How the _hell_ do you plan to extinguish that?"

"Why would I extinguish my flames of youth?" Naruto asked innocently.

"Yosh—" Lee began, when he was suddenly cut off.

"Fucking son of a fucking bitch!" Somebody howled. Naruto winked, and he went to check it out.

The sight that greeted him - and by association, the group - was hilarious. The purple fire was spread everywhere, and it was currently eating at the skin of four people. The person who'd howled was a girl with pale red hair and chestnut-coloured eyes. The fire was eating at her pink shirt, and was enough to have caused two of the males to pass out from a nosebleed.

The remaining male had pale skin and silver hair, along with black eyes and four arms. The only thing keeping him from passing out was his third arm; which kept hitting him at random intervals.

The two men who'd passed out were quite unique in their own way. One of them was dark-skinned and wore an Otogakure headband; while the other was quite... chubby and had yellow skin.

Naruto looked at the teammates who were staring at him. "Well, that was easy."

"You fucking cock-sucker!" The girl yelled. "I'll cut off your balls and shove them up your ass!"

Naruto chuckled. "You know, my friend once threatened to cut off my balls, shove them down my throat and throw me off of the balcony... Needless to say; I never went to a sleepover at his house again."

Everybody seemed at a loss for what to say. In that time, Naruto had already thrown another ball of compacted fire; though the fire was orange this time. The result caused the pale-skinned man to be knocked out; leaving the woman standing.

"Give us Sasuke and we'll let you live," Naruto offered.

"Fuck you," The woman spat at Naruto. Naruto sighed as he fingered a kunai contemplatively.

"Do you want to see a trick my so-called 'Dad' taught me?" Naruto casually asked. When nobody responded, Naruto grinned as he flicked the kunai towards the woman while manipulating the very wind itself. The result forced the woman to jump back straight into Naruto's trap.

**"****Fūton****: Kuuhaku no Jutsu! (Wind Release: Vacuum Technique)"**

The woman's eyes bulged out and she attempted to breathe for air. Naruto frowned thoughtfully. "That's not right... I never even knew that technique," He murmured. Suddenly, Naruto's eyes widened as he felt a kunai scrape against his cheek. **"Kai!" **Naruto clapped his hands together; releasing the genjutsu.

There was a moment of disorientation for Naruto, but he quickly got over it and sighed. "You just had to use genjutsu..."

Naruto quickly took in his surroundings and noted that all he had surrounding him were trees. His teammates were behind him; likely still trapped him the genjutsu. Naruto formed a quick shadow clone and had it snap them out of the genjutsu.

"What the hell?!" Kiba yelled in shock. He pointed an accusing finger towards the girl who'd been left behind. "This is your fault, isn't it?!"

"No fuck, Shitlocks," The girl snorted.

Naruto blinked. "Hey Tayuya, don't take too long," The *cough* chubby man behind her yelled.

"Fuck you, Jirobo," Tayuya shot back.

"Don't swear!" Jirobo yelled from over his shoulder as the other three people in that group went off.

"Well, this sucks," Naruto sighed when the three enemies disappeared. "Alright, who wants her?"

"I'll fight," Neji volunteered. "My Byakugan can see past genjutsu."

Shikamaru frowned, "Are you sure, Neji?"

"Judging by what we know, I'm the best match up," Neji replied. "Hurry up and go!"

"I won't let you!" Tayuya shouted as she raised the flute to her mouth. Naruto sighed and flickered in front of her and crushed the flute.

"Alright then Neji, I hope you enjoyed the present I gave you," Naruto tossed the wrecked flute back to Neji who allowed himself a smirk.

"Thank you, Naruto-san."

"Alright guys, let's go," Shikamaru commanded while Tayuya was still in shock. One minute later, a cry of "You bastards" echoed throughout the entire forest.

_---With Neji---_

"I'm going to fucking kill you," Tayuya hissed.

Neji formed a single seal and quickly activated his Byakugan. "You don't seem very confident," Neji observed. "It would be best if you just gave up."

"Fuck you," Tayuya shot back. She ran towards Neji and took out a kunai. Neji quickly took a stance, and struck her with his Jūken; closing up a tenketsu on her arm. Just as Neji withdrew his hand; she flipped her kunai around and put it in the path of his arm; causing a large portion of his flesh to be cut off.

Neji winced and jumped back as he grabbed his arm. _"If I don't do this quickly, I'll die from blood loss..."_

_---With the Remainder of the Group---_

"Do you think Neji-san will be alright?" Kiba asked inn concern.

"Neji-san's flames of youth burn brightly!" Lee proclaimed. "I have complete confidence in my teammate."

"I agree with Lee... Except the 'flames of youth' part," Naruto chuckled.

"I see the group up ahead, I think we should henge-" Shikamaru started.

"I don't think it'd be smart to use the Henge," Naruto suggested. "Most people can tell whether or not it's a henge just by how much chakra there is."

"So the Henge can't be used," Shikamaru frowned. "What do you guys think we should do?"

"We have the advantage of numbers," Naruto stated.

"Attack them head-on? But no rational..." Shikamaru paused. "Oh, good point. They'd _expect_ us to ambush them. A head-on attack would make them think we believe ourselves to be weak..."

"In other words, they'd think we think we're weak!" Naruto grinned. "But they wouldn't know that we think they think we think we're weak! Even if they think that we think they think we think we're weak, it doesn't matter!"

Everybody stared at Naruto.

_---With the Enemy Group---_

"I think they're weak," Jirobo stated.

"What if they think we think they're weak?" The pale-skinned man asked.

"They wouldn't know that we think they think we think they're weak!" The dark-skinned man cackled gleefully.

"...What the fuck?"

_---Back with the Remainder of the Group---_

"Well, since we don't have any other plan, we might as well do it," Shikamaru shrugged. "Alright, attack in three... two... one!"

The five people quickly jumped ahead as Naruto cut off the group of Oto-nin. "Damn it," The white-haired man cursed. "Alright, Jirobo, you'll have to delay them."

"Why me?" Jirobo asked; scandalized.

"Do you want to face Orochimaru-sama and say that you disobeyed a direct order?" The dark-skinned man demanded.

"Fine!" Jirobo shouted. "You better not disappoint Orochimaru-sama, Kidomaru!"

"Same to you," Kidomaru replied.

Naruto frowned when he saw Jirobo quickly make hand-seals and thrust his hands upon the ground. **"Doton Kekkai: Dorō Dōmu! (****Earth Release Barrier: Earth Prison Dome of Magnificent Nothingness)"**

Suddenly, a large dome of earth surrounded all of them, sans Naruto. Naruto frowned when he saw Jirobo place his hands upon the dome and completely disregard him. _"He's taking chakra from the dome," _Naruto observed.

Naruto sighed and formed seals of his own while sighing. _"This is going to take a shitload of chakra..."_

_"_**Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu****! (Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique)" **Naruto yelled as he scrunched his eyes in concentration.

­­_---Inside the Dome---_

"Shit, what're we going to do?!" Kiba demanded.

"Quiet, I'm trying to think!" Shikamaru demanded. "Lee, can you break through?"

Lee was about to answer; when they all suddenly heard the unmistakeable sound of rushing water. Kiba cocked an ear towards the direction in which it was emanating. "It sounds like a Suiton jutsu..."

"Maybe Naruto's helping us out?" Shikamaru asked; unsure.

All doubts were erased when a large dragon created out of water crashed into the dome and turned it all into mud. Jirobo clenched his fist in frustration and turned to Naruto, who had one hand on the floor and was panting. "You idiot! I was eating!"

"You were eating... my friends," Naruto panted. "I wouldn't... let you do that..." _"A little help here..."_

Naruto sighed when he felt the familiar feeling of his chakra reserves being refilled quickly. He shakily got up and gave a weak grin to the remainder of his group. "So, who wants him?"

"I'll fight him!" Choji proclaimed.

"Are you sure, Choji?" Shikamaru asked warily.

"You've all improved so much, I just..." Choji sighed. "I'm sure."

With a small nod, Shikamaru quickly lead the rest of the group past the fight.

"I'm going to prove that I can beat you!" Choji proclaimed. **"****Bubun Baika no Jutsu! (Partial Multi-Size Technique)"**

Choji quickly took three coloured pills from his pouch and ingested them while shooting his arms towards Jirobo. Jirobo easily jumped out of the way and laughed. "If that's the best you can do, then I doubt you'll even scratch me!"

_---With the Remainder of the Group---_

"He'll be fine," Naruto reassured Shikamaru.

"If you're sure," Shikamaru warily replied. "Alright, since attacking head-on didn't work, and there are only two people left and four of us..."

"We'll just have to separate them all and take them on one at a time," Naruto finished. "My guess is that the four-armed guy has some sort of Kekkei Genkai, but the other one is a wild card. Judging by his mannerisms though, he seems to be a decent tactician."

"So it'd be best for me to go against him?" Shikamaru asked.

"Yeah, and Kiba should go up against the other guy. I'll probably need Lee's help if we run into any other trouble along the way. Can you guys manage without us, though?" Naruto asked.

"I hope so," Shikamaru replied with a frown.

"It'll be fine, Shikamaru-san," Lee piped up. "Naruto-san has never lead us wrong."

_"He's never lead us," _Kiba and Shikamaru thought in tandem.

"Don't worry about me, Naruto!" Kiba boasted. "I'll kick that guy's ass easily."

"Alright, plan 'separate the bitches from Oto' begins now!" Naruto yelled.

_---With Neji---_

Neji and Tayuya warily stared at each other. With reckless abandon, Neji jumped towards Tayuya and closed one of the tenketsu on her leg, and another one in her arm before jumping back. Tayuya collapsed to one knee and hissed. "Alright then, shitbag, I was planning to go easy on you, but you've left me with no choice."

Neji watched cautiously as Tayuya closed her eyes in concentration. Attempting to catch her off guard, Neji jumped in again; only to be thrown back by an extreme explosion of purple chakra. Neji's eyes widened as he saw black markings begin to appear on her face; starting from her shoulder and ending at her hairline.

_"Twice now, my Juken has been beaten. Could it be that the style itself is flawed?" _Neji asked himself as he got off of the ground with a frown. "I will beat you," Neji proclaimed. "I will beat you or die trying."

"Enjoy death, then," Tayuya casually responded. She threw a kunai towards him, and Neji quickly replaced himself with a log. He came up with a variety of plans, all of them consisting of his ability to replace himself with objects, and create clones.

After every single one of his plans failed, Neji was quite worried. Suddenly, an idea struck him, and Neji allowed himself a small smirk.

"Yo shitface, get out here!" Tayuya yelled. Neji created a Bunshin and sent it out for him. Tayuya snorted and flicked a kunai towards it's arm; only for the kunai to go through. "I told _you_ to get out here!"

Neji sighed and brought himself out of the bush he was hiding behind. He quickly created Bunshin, and all of them ran towards Tayuya. She flicked a kunai towards the one which she assumed to be Neji; only for it to be another Bunshin. Tayuya was practically livid, and she began to curse up a storm; not noticing Neji's presence behind her. Neji winced at a particularly graphic explanation of what she would do to him if he was caught. Neji closed his eyes and quickly slit the girl's throat.

"Well..." Neji murmured as he stared at her carcass. "That was easy..."

Neji coughed up some blood and collapsed off of the tree and fell towards the ground; only to be caught by a cushion of sand.

_---10 Minutes After Beginning of Choji's Fight; With Choji---_

"Damn," Choji muttered as he gripped his wounded right hand. If he was lucky, he'd get out of here alive. If not...

Choji threw a quick kunai towards Jirobo; only for it to be caught by the overly cocky man who hadn't even released his cursed seal. Choji cursed again, and gazed mournfully upon the three tablets in his hand.

"Sorry Shika, I guess I won't be getting out of here," Choji muttered as he swallowed the three tablets and extended his leg to kick Jirobo. Jirobo caught the leg and laughed as he began to spin Choji around. Choji closed his eyes and allowed a peaceful smile to adorn his visage. Choji felt himself flying into the air; only to be stopped by something which felt somewhat grainy. He opened his eyes to see Jirobo get enveloped by sand, and killed by the subsequent constriction of said sand.

_---15 Minutes After Beginning of Kiba's Fight; With Kiba---_

"Sorry, Akamaru," Kiba murmured as he placed the abused pet behind some rocks. Kiba sadly formed a few seals and prepared for his last attack. **"T****sūga! (Piercing Fang)"**

Kiba began to spin towards Sakon and Ukon, who were simply standing there in amusement. Just as he was about to hit them; they moved to the side, and Kiba prepared himself for the plunge down the canyon.

The plunge never came, and Kiba found himself staring down from a perch of sand. Kiba watched; unable to tear his eyes away as the two of them were subsequently impaled by fifteen spears made of sand.

_---25 Minutes After Beginning of Shikamaru's Fight---_

Shikamaru sighed as he felt another projectile pierce his stomach. _"Oh, how I wish to be one of those clouds. Floating wherever the wind takes them; free as can be..."_

Shikamaru seemingly braced himself for the killing blow; only to jump to the side from the projectile and use the shadows caused by the trees to quickly choke Kidomaru to death. Shikamaru began to fall towards the ground; only to be caught by feminine arms. Shikamaru looked up into the arms of his saviour only to find, to his surprise, Temari.

_---With Naruto and Lee---_

"He can use bones to attack..." Naruto sighed. "Alright Lee, back up."

"Naruto-san!" Lee began to protest.

"Lee! Trust me," Naruto commanded. Lee began to back up, and watched as Naruto walked up to his opponent and formed one seal. "The name of your killer is Uzumaki Naruto."

The man scoffed, "I refuse to die until Orochimaru-sama has no more need for me!"

Naruto chuckled. "See, about that..."

**"Tajū Kage Bunshin no Jutsu! (Multiple Shadow Clone Technique)"**

Thousands of copies of Naruto popped into existence, and one of them quickly rushed Lee away. Naruto chuckled as he jumped away with Lee and formed another seal. **"Harem no Jutsu!" **Naruto yelled.

One hundred of the clones transformed into beautiful girls who began to tackle Kimimaro, who stood frozen in his spot. Naruto grinned and formed another seal. **"Dai Bakuhatsu! (Great Explosion)"**

The scene that followed was the single most terrifying thing that Lee and Naruto had ever seen. The copies of Naruto all exploded from the overload of chakra. The thing that made it terrifying; however, was the fact that they released all their chakra as fire. The result: Kimimaro gained third degree burns, and subsequently exploded from the amount of explosions that were caused.

Lee stared at Naruto in shock, and Naruto patted Lee on the shoulder. "You should head back, Lee. This is my fight."

"Naruto-san! Don't do this without your teammates!" Lee protested.

"There are some fights we must do ourselves," Gaara interrupted. "I would like to thank you, Uzumaki-san."

"You can call me Naruto," Naruto nodded. "I didn't do anything worth thanking. I simply did what anybody else would do in my position."

"Thank you anyways, Naruto," Gaara smiled genuinely. "I hope to work with you again someday."

"As do I, Gaara," Naruto smiled. "Alright, I'll see you guys later!"

Naruto jumped off towards Sasuke's location in a burst of speed; which Lee would've sworn had surpassed his own. Naruto finally caught up to Sasuke at a location which he recalled to be 'The Valley of the End'.

Sasuke was sitting on a ledge, staring down at the river. "So, you've arrived."

"I have," Naruto replied. "You've been waiting for me."

"I'm going to fight you," Sasuke stated. "If I can't beat you, how can I beat _him_?"

Naruto chuckled. "You sure put the blame on the wrong person."

"What would you know?!" Sasuke yelled. "I watched my family die over and over again!"

"I lived alone," Naruto replied.

"I am an avenger. I will kill Itachi," Sasuke vowed.

The two of them heard a deep voice chuckling behind them. "Oh will you now, foolish otouto?"

Sasuke whirled around in anger, and Naruto observed the changes which occurred. Naruto's eyes widened when he felt the familiar crimson chakra flowing off of Sasuke, and by looking at Itachi, Naruto knew Itachi was just as surprised.

"You bastard!" Sasuke roared as he activated his Sharingan and ran towards Itachi. Naruto fazed out of existence and reappeared in front of Sasuke. Sasuke made the mistake of looking into Naruto's right eye. Naruto smirked.

"**Tsukuyomi** **(Moon Reader)**," Naruto murmured as Sasuke looked into his eyes.

A few moments passed with no sound whatsoever; when a scream suddenly pierced the silence.

_---In a Location Which Can't be Reached by Mortal Means---_

_"So he's used it..." A girl wearing attire consisting primarily of bright colors murmured. "Seems things will get interesting around here."_

"_Indeed," Another girl who wore mostly dark colors replied. "I must say, I am quite intrigued by your choice."_

"_As was I, sister... As was I..."_

_---Back With Naruto __**(I could've ended it there...)**__---_

"Why did you put him to sleep?" Itachi asked, somewhat sad. "I wanted to see if he learned his lesson."

Naruto snorted, "He just tried to kill you."

"He _is_ my foolish otouto," Itachi replied. "Besides, you strayed from the plan."

"You felt that chakra," Naruto replied. "Why do you think he'd have what doesn't belong to him?"

"Ask Kyuubi-sama about the origins of my clan sometime," Itachi responded. "I will see you soon, Naruto-kun."

"Not too soon, I hope," Naruto smiled lightly as he watched Itachi retreat. "Well, I might as well go to Konoha..." Naruto murmured.

* * *

**Yeah. Huge letdown, huh? I bet you were expecting some epic-ownage chapter that was over 12k and would count as a 'one-hour-special' since the avg reading speed is 200wpm and 200*60 = 12000. Oh well, you'll live.**

**I'll also bet you were expecting some epic-pwnage plot, right? Oh well, I simply tied up some loose ends and brought our second-favourite-living-Uchiha back to Konoha. I was actually toying with the idea of keeping him or letting him go. It was a _very_ hard decision to make; considering I'm not the most un-biased person in the world. Argh.**

**I want Bakemonogatari 8 (or was it 9?) subbed. It's lonely without any good anime to watch.**

**Alright, school starts on Wednesday... Meaning my update times will be a little erratic till I get an actual, working schedule. I mean, technically, I'm going to a new school so I don't know how long it'll take to get there and back, etc, etc. Yeah, life sucks.**

**Did I have anything else to mention...?**

_"Argh, do I knock him unconscious or kill him?!" Naruto asked himself._

_"I'll kill him!"_

_"No, I'll knock him unconscious."_

_"No, I'll kill him!"_

_"No, I'll--"_

_**"FUCK THIS!" **Hitomi roared as a paw of red yoki flew out of the ground and attacked insert name here_

**Hehe, I plan to implement that one at some point. *chuckles***

**I still didn't mention what I was supposed to... =[. Oh well...**

**Laterz  
**


	18. An Epicly Short Epic Battle

_**I realized that half of what I think sounds cool... isn't. It's somewhat dorky, and makes my characters/me seem arrogant. That's the problem with modeling characters in your likeness, I guess...**_

**Change I **_**should**_** make: Hikari isn't a hanyo because she couldn't be changed for some weird reason that nobody (but me and smart people) know. (Did I ever say she was a hanyo? I think I forgot everything that happened 50k words ago)  
**

**BTW: "The Last Rising of the Phoenix" raised some concerns (which I myself had at some point). (S)he asked why Naruto hasn't gotten stronger despite the Sharingan. (S)he also pointed out that Naruto was (at some point) able to 'defeat a foe' which the Mizukage couldn't. In addition, I haven't used the hanyo thing very often.**

**Alright, regarding Sharingan: It's a tool, which often wakes up in times of **_**extreme **_**need. Like, say, when the odds are against you and you yourself believe you're going to die, but you **_**don't want to**_**. AKA you're trapped in a dome of mirrors and your friend's protecting you with his Shadow Clones *rolls eyes*. Since Naruto hadn't had any of those times (he was willing to die when he thought that Orochimaru would go with him) the Sharingan has been an on/off type thing.**

**Regarding the 'fighting foe' bit: A berserker is somebody who does whatever the hell it takes, including the risking of their life, to kill their foe. That's what Naruto did. Notice I said whatever the hell it takes. It's not **_**that**_** unreasonable to say he drew on all nine tails for one brief millisecond without any immediate consequences, is it?**

**Lastly, the hanyo thing: I haven't had a chance for that kind of thing. Yup, small explanation.**

_

* * *

---Last Time---_

"_Why did you put him to sleep?" Itachi asked, somewhat sad. "I wanted to see if he learned his lesson."_

_Naruto snorted, "He just tried to kill you."_

"_He __is__ my foolish otouto," Itachi replied. "Besides, you strayed from the plan."_

"_You felt that chakra," Naruto replied. "Why do you think he'd have what doesn't belong to him?"_

"_Ask Kyuubi-sama about the origins of my clan sometime," Itachi responded. "I will see you soon, Naruto-kun."_

"_Not too soon, I hope," Naruto smiled lightly as he watched Itachi retreat. "Well, I might as well go to Konoha..." Naruto murmured._

_---And Now... The Moment You Haven't Been Waiting For...---_

Naruto landed in front of the gate guard. "Halt," The Chûnin commanded.

"I just finished an A-Rank retrieval mission of Sasuke Uchiha," Naruto drawled. "Let me go through so I can report to the Hokage, blah, blah, blah..."

The Chûnin eyed Naruto speculatively for a moment. "Alright, go on ahead."

Naruto shrugged as he passed the man, and casually walked towards the Hokage tower with Sasuke draped over his shoulders. The mutterings of the civilians were starting to make his way towards him, and he was _not_ pleased.

"Is that Uchiha Sasuke with that _demon brat_?" One of the villagers spat.

"I bet you that he attacked the Uchiha," Another villager whispered.

"No way! He doesn't even have any scars!"

"Just goes to show you that he's a demon."

Naruto rolled his eyes and walked into the Hokage tower; where he noticed Minato was waiting for him. Naruto took a moment to note Minato's casual posture. "Yo," Minato casually raised his hand in a greeting.

"I got the brat," Naruto stated. "Where should I put him?"

"Ah, I'm sure Tsunade-sama is waiting for you," Minato replied after a moment. _"He's not going to forgive me, is he?"_

Naruto nodded and followed Minato into Tsunade's office; where she was indeed waiting. "Ah, Naruto," Tsunade greeted without even looking up. "What's the status of your mission?"

"It was successful overall, but there were some... complications," Naruto frowned.

Tsunade looked up; confusion written clear on her face. "What do you mean?"

Naruto tossed Sasuke onto the sofa in Tsunade's room, and Sasuke stirred for a moment before falling asleep again. Naruto sat down and looked Tsunade straight in the eye. "Obaa-chan..." Naruto sighed. "Sasuke has something he shouldn't have?"

Tsunade's eye twitched. "It better be something good, brat, or your head's going through that window."

Minato winced, "Tsunade-sama, I don't—"

Tsunade held up a hand as Naruto started talking. "He has the Kyuubi's yoki."

"Yoki?" Tsunade and Minato asked simultaneously.

Naruto blinked. "Oh, come on! How can you not know what yoki is?!"

_**"How can you not know that I told you that term?" **__Hitomi asked irritably. __**"Honestly, you're relying on your advantages too much."**_

_"Shinobi rule number 'I-don't-give-a-fuck': Take whatever advantages you can get." _"It's the Kyuubi's chakra," Naruto elaborated. "Of course, it's _so_ much more complex. Humans have chakra, Demons have yoki, and gods have..." Naruto paused. "Well, nobody knows what gods have. Either way, yoki is far denser than chakra."

Tsunade frowned, "That _is_ bad..."

Naruto rolled his eyes, "Tell me about it. It's not a lot of yoki, only about one thousandth of a tail, but still. He shouldn't have it."

"When do you think he got it?" Minato asked contemplatively.

"Honestly? Sometime during the Chûnin exam when my clone exploded. Some of the chakra never returned back to me," Naruto replied.

Minato frowned and pulled down Sasuke's collar. After inspecting the seal for a moment, he frowned. "This is bad," Minato stated. "It seems that your chakra altered the seal to a point that even Orochimaru wouldn't know about the consequences."

Tsunade frowned. "What can we do?" She asked.

"Can we kill him?" Naruto asked eagerly.

"Gaki, I didn't raise you to be so violent," Jiraiya pointed out from the window. Naruto's eye twitched.

"You didn't raise me at all!" Naruto accused.

"Oh, really?" Jiraiya asked in a 'clueless' manner.

"What are you here for, Jiraiya?" Tsunade asked; trying to stop the twitching of her hand.

"Ah, you're so cold, Tsunade-hime," Jiraiya whined. "I even brought news about Akatsuki!"

"What is it?" Tsunade snapped her head towards Jiraiya.

"They're on the move," Jiraiya replied. "I've come to ask permission to take Naruto on a two-year training trip."

"Two years, huh...?" Tsunade rubbed her temples. "That's an awful long time..."

Minato frowned. "Take me along with you," He ordered.

"Minato..." Jiraiya frowned.

"Jiraiya-sensei, I've missed out on 13 years of my son's life. I'll be damned if I don't try my hardest to get back in there _now_," Minato replied.

Jiraiya chuckled. "He's got your stubbornness, Minato."

Minato scratched his head, "Really? I thought he was more like Kushina-chan..."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "As I was saying..."

"Go, gaki," Tsunade waved her hand dismissively. "We won't put him to death, but I'll research the causes of this myself. Rest assured that this won't get out to anybody."

"Yeah, just like my parentage," Naruto muttered under his breath.

"_Go_," Tsunade repeated. Naruto rolled his eyes and jumped out the window; only for a chair to hit him in the back of the head mid-jump. "Take the door, damn it!"

Five minutes later, Naruto opened a window and jumped through it. He quietly landed on the floor, and snuck his way towards a bed.

Lying on the bed was a beautiful woman in her mid-teens. She had silky-smooth black hair which would reach to the middle of her back if she was standing up. She also had an oval-shaped face and a perfect hourglass figure **(because all love interests **_**have**_** to look like goddesses)**. Naruto _tried_ not to look at her well-developed chest. Tried and failed.

Along with her figure; however, she had various tubes connected to her body through needles and the like. Naruto sat down upon a conveniently placed chair and stroked her cheek lovingly.

Her eyes fluttered open, revealing one onyx eye and one sky-blue eye. She tried to muster the strength to speak, but failed. "Relax, Hi-hime **(Fire Princess)**," Naruto cooed. "I won't be seeing you for a while, you know..."

Naruto paused when he heard incoming footsteps. With one quick glance at her; he jumped onto the ceiling and stuck himself onto it with chakra. Just as the door opened to reveal an ANBU operative; Naruto was stuck to the ceiling.

"She's awake, huh?" The ANBU muttered. "Danzou-sama won't appreciate this..."

Naruto's eyes widened and he quickly flicked a kunai into the man's spine; effectively severing it. Naruto created a Kage Bunshin to give the man to Tsunade, while sitting upon the chair again. "I'm going on a training trip with Ero-sennin."

Hikari tried to say _something_, but Naruto shushed her. "I'll be back though, don't worry. Just two years, Hi-hime. Then, I'll take you on our first date, alright?" Naruto smiled slightly. "You said you liked festivals, right? Well I'll take you to one."

Naruto ran his hands through her hair, and soon her eyelids began to droop. "I love you, Uchiha Natsuko," Naruto whispered into her ear. "My Hi-hime..."

Hikari's eyes widened again, but when they opened; Naruto was nowhere to be found. Hikari let out the only sound she could in that embarrassing situation: a disappointed whimper.

_---One Month Later---_

"So, how do you feel?" Tsunade asked.

Hikari stretched her arms and winced. "I'm still a little sore..."

"That'll pass," Tsunade smiled warmly. Hikari nodded contemplatively.

"Tsunade-sama... Naruto went on a training trip with Jiraiya, right?"

"Yeah," Tsunade confirmed. "He wants Naruto to be his apprentice or something."

"I see..." Hikari murmured. "Then, Tsunade-sama... Could you please take me on as your apprentice?"

Tsunade raised an eyebrow. "Why should I?"

"I'm tired of being helpless," Hikari confided. "It's always Naruto or somebody else that saves me... I want to save _him_."

Tsunade chuckled as she shook her head. "It'll be hard work."

"I wouldn't have it any other way," Hikari confidently smiled.

_---One Week Later---_

"Well, this all looks to be in order," Tsunade paused as she looked upon the documents. "May I ask why you want to move your clan to Konohagakure no Sato?"

"As you know, our clan has been nomadic for many years," The man in front of her replied. "Yet with the recent warring of the hidden villages, we feel that it's time for our clan to join a village yet again. Hi no Kuni is the only country which is relatively close to our clan. I must confess though, there is another reason..."

"Oh? May I ask what that would be?" Tsunade asked.

"You could ask," The man replied; his eyes twinkling mirthfully. "You wouldn't get a response."

Tsunade rolled her eyes. "Very well then, the Hinote clan is now an official part of Konohagakure no Sato."

"Thank you, Hokage-sama," The man bowed.

Tsunade nodded and the man exited the room. _"Another reason...? That clan is known for their control over fire; yet... I feel as if I'm missing something important..."_

_---Three Years and Two Months Later---_

It was one week before the festival. The entire village was hard at work, trying to prepare for the festival so as not to disappoint the visitors and themselves. This night (since the sun had obviously set), there was a sleeping Chûnin guarding the gate.

As midnight approached, and the moon became covered by a small cloud; a man suddenly appeared on the horizon.

This man wore dark blue pants which would shine whenever the moonlight hit them. His black shirt had a partly-opened zipper in the middle of it; revealing a white shirt underneath. Above all of this; he wore a white cloak which was currently hiding most of his shirt. Upon the back of the cloak were several seals; of which their functions were unknown.

His left eye was the deepest shade of blue which could be seen. It was quite an easy feat to get lost within said eye. His right eye had a completely red iris, and his pupil was in the form of a slit; rather than the 'traditional' circle. He wore his hitai-ite above his right eye; reminiscent of the great Sharingan no Kakashi. His hair was quite unruly, and it was a shade which managed to seem light-blond and dark-blond at the same time. In the middle of his head were two tufts of hair which gradually became a shade of light-red near the tips.

"They seem to be quite open," The man muttered to himself.

_**"Indeed,"**_A voice within his head replied. _**"Perhaps we should show them who we are?"**_

"We can't do that," He told himself as he walked past the guard and knocked him awake. When the guard looked around; there was nobody, so he simply shrugged it off.

_**"Ah, yes... We must remove **__**that**__** scroll..."**_

The man chuckled to himself as the wind picked up; picking up the dust and leaving it floating in the air nearby him. Once the wind had died down; he was nowhere in sight. In truth, he was within the Hokage tower already, and was making his way towards the archives. The man looked at the door to the archives, and rolled his eyes when he saw the seal. "That's quite obvious."

_**"Look to the right," **_The voice in his head suggested. He took a moment to note the _clearly_ masculine tone; reminding himself that the voice _wasn't_ his old companion. _**"Well sorry for your 'loss'."**_

He rolled his eyes yet again and took out a brush. After a few quick movements of his hand; the seal on the door disintegrated without raising an alarm. The man sighed as he stepped into the room and mechanically walked towards the shelves.

After a moment of looking; he found the scroll he was looking for, hiding under a genjutsu. Forming a quick seal; the man pressed his hand upon the scroll. He quickly unravelled the scroll and scanned it; looking for the technique he needed.

_**"Maybe you should copy the techniques," **_The voice suggested again.

"I don't need them," The man stated after a minute-long pause. "Ah, there it is!"

He quickly took out his brush and was about to move it, when he felt two round objects press against his back; followed by the feeling of cold steel against his neck.

"Who are you?" The person behind him asked. The man's lips moved slightly upwards. "Why are you here?" The person behind the feminine voice asked.

"I don't know," He muttered in a rough voice; completely unlike the one he'd spoken with previously. "Perhaps I'm suicidal?" He made four strokes with his brush and a seal covered a portion of the scroll. Before the female could react; he threw the scroll into the air, and reversed their positions; catching the scroll on its way down. "Or, perhaps... I'm here to fulfill a promise," He murmured in her ear; his lips tilting even further upward when he felt a shiver run down her spine. She knocked the scroll out of his hands, and attempted to move behind him again. The man caught the hand wielding the kunai before she could hold it to his neck again. "What's your next move?"

"Maybe I should ask you about yours," She responded in a slightly husky voice; as a tendril of raven-black hair brushed against his shoulder. He felt a disturbance in his cloak; indicating that she was holding a kunai to his back.

"Indeed," He chuckled hoarsely. "My last move is... to disappear," He replied before disappearing in a puff of smoke. Her eyes widened and she looked for the scroll he'd been holding; relieved to find it lying upon the ground.

"What'd he do with it...?" She murmured. The woman opened up the scroll to see a seal covering the portion which had previously said 'Shiki Fūjin'. The woman frowned. "Shiki Fūjin? That's..." As recognition hit her; her lips tilted upwards in a genuine smile; the first she'd made in over two years. "So you're back in time for the festival, Naruto-koi?"

_---Two Days Later---_

Hikari was walking home in a somewhat unhappy mood. Tsunade had forced her to help with the paperwork, and she didn't even have the option of saying no.

_"Paperwork builds character," Tsunade explained._

Hikari rolled her eyes and continued back to her apartment. As she passed Ichiraku ramen, she raised a finely-shaped eyebrow at the unmistakeable sound of splurging. Hikari was about to walk inside the shop, but after a momentary pause, she continued upon her way. _"Maybe I should let __him__ come to __me__..."_

The blonde-haired boy-turned-man within the stand shook his head when he felt Hikari's chakra signal move away. _"She hasn't changed, huh?" _"Thanks for the meal, old man," Naruto grinned as he slapped a bill down upon the counter. The old ramen chef looked at the bill and his heart nearly stopped when he looked at its value. He looked around for the person who'd paid for it; yet was unable to find anybody.

Hikari shook her head in amazement when she saw the same person standing in front of her apartment with a hastily picked rose, if the blood on his finger said anything. She looked him up and down for a moment, and licked her lips slightly. "So, you're back," She stated.

"I guess I am," He responded.

Hikari was about to say something, but chose to let her fists do the talking, so to speak. In other words; she took her fist, and punched him in the gut as hard as she could. "You have the gall to visit me after _leaving_ without waiting for me to recover?! Honestly, Naruto!"

"Oh, it's Naruto now?" Naruto grinned. "I thought it was Naruto_-koi_," He leaned forward and whispered; putting extra emphasis on the 'koi'.

"Shut up!" She shoved him away; a small blush leaving her cheeks. "You said you were going to be two years!"

Naruto sighed. "There were certain... complications."

Hikari frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Well, let's just say... Hitomi's not in my head... stomach anymore," Naruto cryptically responded. "The rest is up to you."

Hikari was about to ask another question; when Naruto redirected his focus towards the Hokage tower. Hikari squinted, trying to find what Naruto thought to be more intriguing than their conversation. "Jiraiya said something he shouldn't have," Hikari deadpanned; watching as Jiraiya flew out the window.

"That's what makes him Ero-sennin," Naruto chuckled. "So, aren't you going to invite me in?" He asked expectantly; expertly dodging the subject they were previously discussing.

"I don't know," Hikari shrugged. "Who's the rose for?"

"It's for Obaa-chan!" Naruto grinned.

There was silence. A cricket chirped. Then there was even _more_ silence. Finally, Hikari shoved past him and went inside her apartment.

"Hikari?" Naruto blinked. "Oi, Hikari-chan! You locked the door!" Naruto frowned. "Hi-hime?!"

_**"Even **__**I**__** knew that was a bad idea..."**_

_"Shut it, fox," Naruto countered._

_**"Why won't you accept it? I'm you, and you're me."**_

"I won't accept it until she does," Naruto tentatively murmured. After a moment of silence, Naruto knocked on the door. There was no response. Naruto sighed and knocked the door again. Once again, there was no response. Naruto was about to knock on the door a third time; when Hikari opened the door and stared questioningly at him. Naruto rubbed the back of his head nervously. "I was... uh, wondering if you wanted to go to the festival with me."

Hikari stared neutrally towards Naruto; causing him to blush slightly. Naruto rubbed his foot against the floor nervously; missing Hikari's grin. "I don't know..." Hikari shrugged.

"Aw, come on!" Naruto pleaded.

"Well, I guess there's only one thing I can do," Hikari sighed. "Naruto-koi," Hikari grinned.

Naruto stared at Hikari in shock, and finally broke out into a humungous grin. Without any warning, he tackled her into a hug. Naruto inhaled her fragrance; somehow reminded of jasmine. Hikari blinked and tentatively wrapped her arms around him. "I missed you, Hi-chan," Naruto murmured into her ear.

"I missed you too, Naruto-kun," Hikari mumbled when they pulled away. "So, why don't you come in for some coffee?"

_**"Ooh, she's inviting you for coffee! What next, will she ask you to 'take her'?" **_

"Sure," Naruto cheerily replied. _"Not that I wouldn't mind, but... Shut up." _"So, what were you in the ICU for anyways? Obaa-chan never told me."

Hikari paused mid-step. "Oh, nothing really. They just wanted to make sure that nothing bad happened..."

"Nothing bad?" Naruto furrowed his brows.

"Well..." Hikari pursed her lips as she handed Naruto his coffee. "It's nothing. After all, the iryō-ninaren't yet good enough to safely transplant limbs yet... Apparently, the last person who'd had a transplant..." Hikari shuddered.

"Oh," Naruto frowned. "You're fine though, right?"

"Of course," Hikari replied. "It'd take a lot more than some surgery to get me down!"

Naruto chuckled as he took a sip of coffee. "That's true. So, did anything new happen lately?"

"According to Tsunade-shishou, there's a new clan in Konoha," Hikari conversationally stated. "Also, all of the Rookie 9, save for you, are either Chûnin or higher."

Naruto blinked. "What about 'the defector'?"

"Oh, you mean Uchiha-san?" Hikari asked. "He's a Tokubetsu Jōnin."

_"Uchiha-san, huh...?" _"That's... interesting," Naruto blinked. "So what're you?"

Hikari shrugged. "Just a Jōnin."

"I feel left behind," Naruto sighed as he hung his head. "Oh wait, what'd you say about that new clan?"

"They're known as the Hinote clan, and they specialize in fire. They're said to have nearly complete mastery of fire as their Kekkei Genkai."

_**"Hinote, huh...? That's an old name," **__The fox in Naruto's head chuckled._

"Hmm..." Naruto nodded thoughtfully. "Sounds like Konoha just gained another strong clan."

"I wouldn't know," Hikari shrugged. "I haven't gotten to see any of them in action yet, and all of their mission information requires S-Level Clearance."

"That's pretty intense," Naruto frowned. "Anyways, as much as I'd love to chat; I better make sure that Ero-sennin is still alive."

Hikari sighed, "It would be bad if he died."

"True," Naruto chuckled. "See you later, Hi-hime," Naruto casually raised a hand as he jumped out of a window. Hikari sighed.

"Well... It's time to find an awesome yukata!" Hikari cheered.

Naruto jumped inside Tsunade's office and overshot his mark at the same time the door was slammed shut. Tsunade looked up to see Naruto standing in front of the door.

"You used the door?" Tsunade asked in shock.

"We overshot our mark," Jiraiya replied from the ceiling. Naruto looked up and noticed that Jiraiya and Minato were precariously stuck to the ceiling.

"What he said," Naruto gestured towards Jiraiya.

Tsunade sighed. "What is it?"

"Well, I was wondering what you could tell me about the Hinote clan," Naruto stated.

"What's to say? They have unmatched control over fire, and their heir is graduating from the Academy this month."

"That's not a lot," Naruto stated. "Oh well. Any news on Sasuke's cursed mark?"

"Nothing," Tsunade wearily replied. "On the bright side, it's fading..."

"I suppose that's good," Naruto sighed.

"Yo, Tsunade-hime, you should test Naruto to see what rank he should become," Jiraiya suggested from the roof.

"I'd love to, but the council..." Tsunade groaned.

"Let me ask you one very important question, Tsunade-sama," Minato sighed as he landed on the floor. "Who is the leader of this village?"

"The Hokage..."

"What is the council _supposed_ to be?"

"An advisory group with no real power," Tsunade paused. "The problem is, Sarutobi-sensei _gave_ them power! For the life of me, I can't figure out how to get rid of it!"

"How many more votes do you need?" Minato asked.

"Two votes," Tsunade replied.

"Lucky you! I'm on your side, and I can get Hiashi there as well!" Minato grinned.

Tsunade gaped. "That's _way_ too easy..."

"Well, there is one problem..." Minato sighed. "You'd have to announce the fact that I'm still alive, and the fact that Naruto's my son. Either way, can we get on with the testing?"

Tsunade rolled her eyes. "Go to the Chûnin exam arena, the day after tomorrow at 8 AM. You'll be tested in genjutsu by Yuuhi Kurenai, taijutsu by Maito Gai and ninjutsu by Hatake Kakashi."

"Wouldn't this be harder with a festival coming up?" Naruto asked.

"You aren't _scared_, are you?" Tsunade asked smugly.

"Oh, hell no," Naruto narrowed his eyes.

"Then get ready for your test. All the Jōnin will be there," Tsunade stated.

"Alright," Naruto shrugged. "I hope that Kakashi-sensei, Gai-san and Kurenai-san are ready to get their asses kicked."

_**"I wouldn't do this if I had control..."**_

_"I know that, Kyuubi-san. We have no choice. After all, there's a chance that we'll get what we need," _Naruto silently explained. "Anyways, I'll see you in two days."

_---Two Days Later---_

Naruto yawned as he walked into the arena. He'd been up for half the night simply preparing for the test.

"Yo," Naruto casually waved to Kakashi, who was standing in the center. Kakashi waved back.

"Let the match between Uzumaki Naruto and Hatake Kakashi begin!" Tsunade yelled from the 'Kage-only area'.

"How about skipping the warm ups, Sensei?" Naruto asked. Kakashi nodded and reached up for his forehead protector, and Naruto did the same.

The two of them pulled up their forehead protectors to reveal their unique Sharingan eyes. Kakashi raised an eyebrow when he noticed Naruto's own eye, but chose to be silent.

For one moment, there was silence. Then, the two of them exploded into action.

Kakashi quickly formed seals and yelled, **"Doton: Doryūheki! (Earth Release: Earth Style Wall)"**

Mud flew out from Kakashi's mask, in the location where his mouth would be. It quickly piled up and formed a wall, just as Naruto finished his own seals. **"Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu! (Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique)"**

Water seemed to fall out of the air and condense into the form of a spinning vortex. Naruto grinned and released the technique; sending it towards Kakashi, who seemed quite thankful for the mud wall. Naruto's grin grew even more, and he pumped more chakra into the technique. Kakashi's eyes widened and he jumped out of the way before the water could sweep him away.

"You managed to create water out of thin air?" Kakashi asked in awe.

"Well..." Naruto shrugged. "I guess." _"Alright Kyuubi-san, go for the next attack." _Naruto formed two one-handed seals and yelled out, **"Katon to Fūton: Dai Endan! (Fire and Wind Release: Great Flame Missile)"**

Kakashi's eyes widened as he saw two attacks performed simultaneously. Naruto sucked in as much air as he could and quickly released it. Kakashi's eyes widened when he saw a clone pop out of the earth and join Naruto. Kakashi only had one second in which to curse god before he had to get out of there however the hell he could. Kakashi looked around frantically for anything he could use. He quickly noticed the water leftover from Naruto's earlier technique and ran through seals. **"Suiton: Suijinheki! (Water Release: Water Encampment Wall)"**

The water quickly flew up to protect Kakashi from the brunt of the attack. Sadly, it was unable to fully protect him, and he flew back; badly scorched, straight into Naruto's trap.

Naruto grinned as Kakashi was enveloped within a bubble of water. "So, Kakashi-sensei, do you plan on giving up?"

Kakashi's only response was a quick eye-smile as he used the Kawarimi with a log. Naruto looked behind him, and noticed Kakashi. "Let's finish this, ne, Naruto-kun?"

"Why not, sensei?" Naruto cockily grinned.

Kakashi ran through seals, and Naruto courteously waited. Kakashi raised an eyebrow, but simply finished his technique and watched as Naruto formed his own. Kakashi winced as he felt his hand began to burn, and he knew that he only had one chance. Naruto winced as he heard a painful screeching noise come from Kakashi's technique.

Naruto looked at the blue ball of chakra in his hand. Then, he looked at the white light enveloping Kakashi's hand. He repeated the process and frowned thoughtfully as Kakashi ran towards him. _"Hmm, lightning beats water, wind beats lightning… Damn, I wish I'd tried to add elemental manipulation to the Rasengan. Oh well."_

Kakashi's eyes widened as he saw the blue ball in Naruto's hand change shape into a large violet ball. Naruto winked at Kakashi, and he brought his hand forward to meet Kakashi's. **"Raikiri! (Lightning Blade)" **Kakashi yelled.

**"Dai-Yoko Rasengan! (Great Demon Fox Rasengan)" **Naruto yelled, as the two attacks clashed and battled for dominance. Naruto's eyes widened as the light grew more intense, and he only had one second's warning when the two attacks blew up.

To Be Continued.

* * *

**I wasn't quite sure whether to release it at this point, or continue. I decided to just release it quickly as opposed to later on with about 300 more words. Yup, I'm awesome that way. Anyways, regarding school... My schedule seems somewhat intensive, and apparently, if I want to live past semester 2, I gotta drop Computers (in semester 2). Seriously, who wants to go to sleep at 10 and wake up at 5? The teachers haven't gotten started with homework yet, and what I've been given, I can handle. I'll release about 1-2 chapters per week depending on how much time I can spare.  
**

**Laterz?  
**


	19. Flames of Youth

**I finished yesterday, sent it to my proof-reader for proofing...**

**Never got it back.**

**I will now completely rely on myself.**

**BTW: There's a deleted scene at the end that I removed (but I put it up for you) since I thought it seemed kinda over-douche-ish. Yup. Mind you, a little bit of the information in there is relevant. You might as well say that it took place, but i cba to fix it... cuz I can't fix what I've already written. (The main problem is the "challenge")  
**

_

* * *

---Last Time---_

_Kakashi's eyes widened as he saw the blue ball in Naruto's hand change shape into a large violet ball. Naruto winked at Kakashi and he brought his hand forward to meet Kakashi's. __**"Raikiri! (Lightning Blade)" **__Kakashi yelled._

"_**Dai-Yoko Rasengan! (Great Demon Fox Rasengan)" **__Naruto yelled, as the two attacks clashed and battled for dominance. Naruto's eyes widened as the light grew more intense, and he only had one second's warning when the two attacks blew up._

_---And Now---_

"I wonder who won," one of the Jōnin mused.

"I am unsure!" Gai proclaimed. "Uzumaki-san's flames of youth are burning very brightly! I believe he may be able to fan my eternal rival's flames of youth!"

Hikari smirked as she silently activated her Sharingan; hiding it behind her blue contact lens. She raised an eyebrow when she noticed that they were still in the epicentre of the explosion. No, wait…

The two of them flew back and hit the stadium walls. Naruto looked up to see Kakashi attempting to stand up, and he decided to try the same. Naruto winced as he felt the chakra-burned hand touch the ground. Naruto and Kakashi nodded, and quickly formed seals. Kakashi finished his seals first, and yelled, **"Katon: ****Hōsenka no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Phoenix Immortal Fire Technique)"**

Multiple fireballs shot towards Naruto, and he had a second in which to complete his technique. **"Fūton: Zetsudai Kaze! (Wind Release: Immense Wind)"**

Kakashi raised an eyebrow as Naruto announced the name of his technique. _"He's using a wind technique against fire?"_

The fireballs halted midair, and began to reverberate slightly. Kakashi's eyes widened as they reversed their direction and moved towards him. Kakashi tried to jump, but his legs were held in place by two clones. Kakashi braced himself for the fireballs, but was surprised when they didn't come. When he opened an eye, Kakashi saw Naruto holding one hand out; stopping the fireballs midair. Naruto closed his hands, and they were all sucked into one area and extinguished.

"Good match," Naruto grinned to Kakashi, who collapsed from the strain of using his Sharingan in a ninjutsu-intensive battle.

The entire stadium was silent in awe. "Well shit," Gai stated in shock.

Naruto looked expectantly towards Tsunade, who was shocked speechless. Finally, Tsunade shook it off and discreetly handed Jiraiya some money. She then stood up and announced, "The winner is Uzumaki Naruto! There will be a 5 minute intermission until the match against the genjutsu mistress, Yuuhi Kurenai!"

Hikari smirked slightly, and quickly made her way to the first row. She _really_ wanted to see this closely.

_---5 Minutes Later---_

Kurenai calmly walked down to the stadium; exuding an air of confidence. Up in the stands, her former genin students were conversing. "I bet Kurenai-sensei will win!" Kiba loudly announced.

Shino was silent for a moment. He pushed up his glasses and stated in a cold, monotonous tone, "It is logical to assume that Naruto has the upper hand in this fight. We are uncertain of his capabilities, while Kurenai-sensei's aptitude for genjutsu is well-known."

"I t-think it would be n-nice if Naruto-san won," Hinata quietly added.

_"Hmm, should I keep the Sharingan activated or not?" _Naruto asked himself. _"On one hand, it gives me an advantage. On the other hand, it's technically cheating."_

_**"It's not cheating if you don't get caught," **__The Kyuubi commented. __**"Besides, they don't know it's the Sharingan. Just keep it in the Mangekyou form, and you'll be fine."**_

Naruto shrugged. Finally, Tsunade signalled the beginning of the match. "Match two: Yuuhi Kurenai versus Uzumaki Naruto!"

Naruto and Kurenai nodded to each other, and Naruto calmly watched as Kurenai formed seals. Naruto looked to the left with his non-Sharingan eye and noticed the roots growing out of the ground. He then looked up and with his Sharingan eye, he noticed Kurenai walking towards him. _"No matter how many times this happens it still disorients me when the images don't match up…"_

Kurenai prepared her kunai, and Naruto stood unflinchingly as the roots began to envelop him and limit his movement. As Kurenai got closer; Naruto formed a seal with one hand, and the genjutsu reversed itself upon Kurenai.

Kurenai frowned as she felt the roots begin to envelop her.

_"I bet I could make a pretty psychologically devastating genjutsu with this," _Naruto mused. _"Immoral, but psychologically devastating."_

Naruto raised an eyebrow as Kurenai dispelled the genjutsu by biting her lip. Naruto sighed thoughtfully and quickly formed seals. **"Chiisai na Tsukuyomi (Small Moon Reader)," **Naruto muttered.

Hikari raised an eyebrow, while Kakashi's… eye widened at the name of Naruto's technique. The spectrum of light seemed to shift to the red side, and all the Jōnin found were stuck to crosses. Naruto blinked when he noticed that all of the audience was on the crosses. Naruto rubbed his head slightly and released them. He held his hand out, and a sword appeared on it.

Kurenai frowned. She couldn't release the genjutsu through conventional methods, or any of her own. Naruto chuckled at her confused expression. "I based this genjutsu off of Uchiha Itachi's Tsukuyomi. It's a larger version which affects everybody in the area, including allies. The largest difference is the chakra usage and the time that passes. Itachi can manage 72 hours in his version," Naruto stated. "I can only manage 24 before I start feeling strained. Oh, and you can't break out of this. It's powered by Fūinjutsu _and_ chakra," Naruto explained. "Still, I'm sure Itachi's envious of this technique… After all, I _can_ kill people with this."

Kurenai's eyes widened. "I forfeit!" She declared.

Naruto softly smiled and muttered, **"Kai."**

Hikari frowned thoughtfully. _"I couldn't copy it… So he's perfected the Sharingan defence, huh?"_

Jiraiya looked expectantly at Tsunade. "How'd he make it?" Tsunade asked.

"It was hard," Jiraiya admitted. "If anything, it's related to a training accident he had…" Jiraiya's mood grew sombre. "In any case, this is one of his 'last stand' techniques. It puts a dent in even _his_ chakra reserves."

Tsunade raised her eyebrows. "So I guess it won't be put in Konoha's jutsu archives," She stated.

"Nope," Jiraiya replied. "He's made it quite clear that he doesn't feel like contributing any of his jutsu towards Konoha."

Tsunade shook her head sadly. "I can't say I blame him."

Jiraiya continued looking at Tsunade expectantly, and she grumbled; handing him another bill.

With a sigh, Tsunade stood up. "The winner is Uzumaki Naruto! The next fight will occur immediately, with Uzumaki Naruto fighting Maito Gai."

Hikari looked at Kakashi and grinned. "I bet three hundred on Naruto."

Kakashi frowned thoughtfully. "I can't decide who to bet on…"

"I'm taking bets over here!" One of the Jōnin shouted. Hikari grinned slightly and approached the man.

"What're the odds of Uzumaki Naruto winning this fight?" She asked.

"The odds are 1 in 100," The man replied.

"That's pretty low," Hikari mused. "I bet 2,000 ryo on him."

Gai grinned widely as he jumped down onto the stadium and faced Naruto. Kurenai had already vacated the fighting area. "Yosh! Let our flames of youth burn brightly, Naruto-kun!"

"Good luck, Gai-sensei," Naruto nodded respectfully as he took his stance. Gai gained a grim look upon his face and did the same. Naruto frowned thoughtfully as he studied Gai. _"He's not wearing any weights, and he's using the __Gōken… This'll be interesting."_

"Begin!" Tsunade yelled.

The two of them wasted no time springing into action. Naruto shot forward at speeds unparalleled by most shinobi, and aimed a roundhouse kicked towards Gai's head. Naruto quickly planted his hands upon the ground and used his other foot to roundhouse. Before Gai could block that kick, he pushed off with his hands and twisted midair; coming down with a hammer kick. Gai quickly jumped out of the way, and Naruto's foot hit the ground; creating a massive crater.

While the dust was still clearing, Naruto made a quick seal and placed his hand upon the ground. Naruto grinned as time seemed to slow down from his perspective. Gai was moving at what he considered to be a snail's pace as he approached Naruto.

**"Konoha Senpū! (Leaf Whirlwind)"** Gai yelled as he jumped into the air and quickly performed two spinning kicks at varying heights. Naruto looked at Gai's legs as he approached them, and he grabbed Gai's first leg, using it to throw Gai into the air.

Naruto quickly jumped up and followed him. The two of them sparred on their way down; exchanging quick kicks, punches and various other attacks. As the two of them landed; they separated and went to different sides of the stadium.

"You are doing very well, Naruto-san," Gai complimented. "However, I would prefer if you chose to go all-out on me."

Naruto grinned. "My style is made for killing, Gai-sensei. I can't use it in a friendly spar. Although I suppose it's a good thing that I was taught another style."

Gai nodded. "Then show me your flames of youth, Naruto-san!"

Gai rocketed towards Naruto and flew into the air; attempting to sidekick him. Naruto grabbed the foot and brought his own up for a quick hammer kick. Gai's eyes widened at the sheer speed, and he quickly fell backwards onto his hands; causing Naruto to fly over him. Interestingly enough, Naruto didn't relinquish hold of Gai's leg; causing Gai to go flying with Naruto.

_**"I didn't know that was possible," **__The Kyuubi mused._

"How did he get so powerful?" Tsunade asked Jiraiya.

"Necessity," Jiraiya stated. "He was visited by a member of Akatsuki one month in, who'd come to deliver a message."

_"You will have a choice in three years. You can either come with us peacefully, or watch as your village burns."_

"He pushed himself past the limit once that happened," Jiraiya sighed. "You know the advantage to Kage Bunshin, right?"

"I do," Tsunade nodded. "The person receives the experience from the Bunshin once it dissipates. What does that have to do with this?"

"He made 1,000 clones every day for one month," Jiraiya stated. "It nearly killed him."

Tsunade's eyes widened. "It shouldn't be possible… He should've died from the stress after 29 days, let alone 31. Even if it was possible, he'd have to learn 1,000 things each day…"

"He lost his best friend," Jiraiya continued; ignoring Tsunade's commentary.

Naruto let go of Gai and relentlessly attacked him; creating openings where there were none. Just as Gai was about to land, Naruto disappeared below him and gave him a jaw-shattering uppercut; sending him back into the air.

Naruto jumped up; waiting until Gai was parallel to the ground to clasp his hands together and bring them down as fast as he could onto Gai's sternum.

Gai fell to the ground; creating a crater. Naruto landed lightly and walked towards Gai.

"What do you mean?" Tsunade asked.

"The amount of mental stress he put himself under… It's nothing that any human could handle," Jiraiya sighed. "The only possible solution was for him to become a demon. His best friend, the former Kyuubi no Kitsune, otherwise known as Hitomi… was reduced to a demonic one-tailed kit."

Tsunade stared at Jiraiya with her mouth agape. "You mean Naruto's the new Kyuubi no Kitsune?"

"In a sense," Jiraiya replied. "In any case, the mental stress actually increased from that; since Naruto gained all the memories of Hitomi. Luckily, the change from demon to human saved him… In the end, he created an "avatar" of his power, which he himself refers to as the Kyuubi."

"So he's in denial," Tsunade mused.

"Truth be told, I shouldn't be telling you this," Jiraiya sighed. "What with your obligation as Hokage…"

Naruto thrust his hand forward towards Gai's neck; stopping just before impact. "Yield," Naruto commanded.

Gai grinned. **"Kaimon Kai! (Release: Gate of Opening)**! Let the power of youth explode!"

Naruto's eyes widened when Gai suddenly kicked him in the chin. Gai pushed off of the ground and kicked Naruto once more, sending him further into the air. Gai sent another kick, and Naruto flew into the air. _"Why am I reminded of a taijutsu move that could possible kill me at this point?" _Naruto mused.

Gai jumped up and appeared behind Naruto. Naruto felt Gai form chakra strings, linking them together. Gai used their momentum to flip upside-down; causing their heads to face the ground. Gai began to spin, and Naruto quickly planned within his head. _"He's going to use the rotational force to increase the pain I feel… and considering that I'll hit first, it'll only temporarily damage him. The only easy way to do this is to cut his chakra string at the last moment, while reversing the force for myself, but not him…"_

Naruto eyed the chakra strings warily, and slowly began to move them away from his body, causing him to slowly stop spinning. Gai's eyes widened just as Naruto cut the chakra strings with his own chakra. Gai hit the ground head-first, while Naruto quickly flipped so that his feet absorbed the impact.

When the dust cleared, Gai woozily stood up and gave Naruto a grin; complete with the 'pinging' of his teeth. "Yosh! The lotus of Leaf Village blooms twice! **Kyūmon Kai (Release: Gate of Rest)!"**

Naruto's eyes widened. _"Crap, I can't let him open the next gate. I guess there's only one thing I can do!"_

Naruto quickly took out eight kunai and threw them at inhuman speed, towards Gai; who had to stop the opening of the gates. Naruto grinned when the paper attached to the kunai began to glow, and a white line appeared on the ground; forming a seal. Gai narrowed his eyes and attempted to open the next gate.

**"Seimon Kai! (Release: Gate of Life)"**

Gai's skin began to turn red, but it suddenly stopped midway. Gai grunted from exertion, and Naruto quickly took out a kunai and placed it against Gai's neck. "I've forcibly closed the Hachimon. You won't be able to use them, and I'm quite sure your body's immensely strained."

Indeed, Gai was sweating profusely, and his heart was beating far faster than it should have been. Gai yelled out, "I concede! Naruto-san's flames of youth burn _far_ brighter than mine!"

Tsunade blinked. "Alright, then! The winner of this match is Uzumaki Naruto! If anybody else wishes to fight him, now's the time."

Everybody was silent. Whether it was shock or fear at the opportunity to face Naruto, nobody knew. When nobody spoke up, Tsunade continued her announcement. "Since nobody wishes to face Naruto, I hereby award him the rank of Jōnin!"

_Finally_, people cheered for Naruto, and he allowed himself a small smile. A small, completely genuine, smile.

_---15 Minutes Later---_

"So, you beat all of them," Hikari conversationally stated.

"Yup," Naruto replied.

"Even the genjutsu mistress…"

"Yup."

"Don't you think she was at a disadvantage?" Hikari asked.

"I suppose," Naruto shrugged.

"Well then, Naruto_-kun_, how about letting me test one of my genjutsu on you?" Hikari asked coyly.

Naruto gulped. _"I have a bad feeling about this." _"I don't know…" Hikari pouted. Naruto gulped. Hikari widened her eyes and began to tear up. Naruto's eye began to twitch. Hikari shifted her facial features once more. "Alright, fine!" Naruto yelled.

Hikari grinned widely. "Alright! Let's go to training ground 7!"

Naruto hung his head in shame. "I have a _really_ bad feeling about this…"

_---At Training Ground 7---_

"Alright, do your worst," Naruto sighed as he lowered his forehead protector onto his Sharingan eye. Hikari grinned and formed seals. The next thing Naruto knew, he was inside a darkly lit room. "Hikari…?" Naruto hesitantly called.

"Yes, Naruto-koi?" Hikari asked in a breathy voice from behind him. Naruto stiffened as he felt the buttons of his shirt come undone.

_"Wait, since when did I have a button-down shirt?! Only my night-shirt…" _Naruto's eyes widened. _"Oh fuck." _Once his shirt had become undone, he felt a light, feathery fingers brush against his body. The hands made their ascent downwards, and Naruto gulped. "Hi-hime… Could you not…?"

"I thought you wanted this," Hikari murmured into his ear. Naruto felt a shiver run down his spine, and he heard the sound of a zipper being slowly undone.

"I-I d-don't…" Naruto stammered.

"Don't lie to me, Naruto-koi," Hikari moaned. "Oh, my… You're awfully… big."

That was it for Naruto. As soon as she finished those words, a huge nosebleed. Luckily, or unluckily for him, the nosebleed counted as a wound and it cancelled out the genjutsu she'd casted upon him.

Naruto looked across at Hikari, who was wearing a humongous grin. "So, had fun?" She asked innocently.

Naruto moved his hand up and brought it back down to look at the blood. His mouth still agape, he looked at Hikari, blinked, and finally replied, "Could you do that again?"

"No can do, Naruto-_koi_," Hikari giggled. _"Did he just ask me if I could do that again?"_

_"Wait, did I just ask her if she could do that again?"_

Naruto narrowed his eyes and he brought his hitai-ite upwards again, quickly catching her in a Tsukuyomi.

One second later, Hikari had a huge blush on her face. She wouldn't tease him again… for a few days.

_---30 Minutes Later; Hokage Tower---_

"You wanted to see me, Obaa-chan?" Naruto asked.

Tsunade looked at her fist, then at Naruto's face. "Take a look at this," She held out a sheet of paper.

Naruto read the paper and frowned "Are there any C-Rank missions outside of Konoha?"

"I have one available," Tsunade replied. "It's an escort mission."

Naruto frowned. "Those tend to be higher than C-rank… When is it?"

"It starts two weeks after the festival," Tsunade replied.

"Alright, could I see the details?" Naruto asked.

Tsunade handed Naruto a scroll, which he quickly scanned over. "So?" She asked when he handed back the scroll.

"I'll take it," Naruto stated.

"Alright then," Tsunade nodded. "Here's your Jōnin vest, by the way." Naruto gratefully took the vest and put it on underneath his cloak. Tsunade chuckled slightly, "You look a lot like your father."

"I wonder if that's good or bad," Naruto chuckled mirthlessly. "Konoha's demon, the son of the Yondaime."

"You're not a demon," Tsunade reprimanded. "In any case, do we _have_ any other business?"

"I _am _a demon," Naruto corrected with a small smile. "Not that it matters. Humans tend to fear what they don't understand. In any case, I think we're done."

"Alright then, see you later, Naruto," Tsunade dismissed him with a wave of her hand, and he nodded before jumping out of the window. Tsunade watched him leave irritably. When she turned back to her desk, her eyes twitch. "What the…?"

Her paperwork had doubled. It bred like rabbits.

Naruto chuckled when he heard Tsunade utter multiple curses. "I'm not sure it's beneficial to give the strongest ninja in the village paperwork. They're more likely to…"

Naruto blinked as a desk flew out of the Hokage tower. He watched in morbid fascination as Jiraiya, who was minding his own business (for once), was crushed by the desk.

"Hurt the other strongest ninja in the village," Naruto snorted.

Naruto jumped towards the Hokage monument, and peacefully watched the sunset atop the Hokage monument. Naruto remained stationary until the moon had fully risen, and he stared contemplatively upon the orb in the sky. "They say that the Rikudō Sennin created the moon," Naruto said to nobody in particular.

A large black wolf trotted out from the moon and lay beside Naruto. The wolf's two tails were waving contentedly behind it. "They're fools," the wolf snorted.

"I suppose so," Naruto mused. "Humans can only do so much. So, what's your opinion regarding the Uchiha?"

"The power-stealers, huh?" The wolf mused. "I have nothing against them."

"Your master?" Naruto prodded.

"She believes it to be fine so long as he doesn't switch to the dark path," The wolf replied.

"Is that so," Naruto nodded thoughtfully. "Any news on the Yin side of my power?"

"It's still within Shinigami-sama's stomach," The wolf replied. It turned its head towards Naruto. "You know that you have to deal with the Akatsuki soon."

It wasn't a question. "I know," Naruto calmly replied. "I'm still trying to decide the best method. Did she say anything specific regarding Uchiha Itachi?"

"She is satisfied with him at the moment," The wolf stated.

"Hmm," Naruto mused. "How's Hitomi-san doing?"

"Hitomi-sama is still somewhat annoyed at you," The wolf chuckled. "I believe her exact words were 'retarded demon who doesn't understand the cost of power'."

"Sounds like her alright," Naruto shook his head with a small smile on his face. "Is there anything important I need to know?"

"Dark times are coming," The wolf cryptically replied. "That was all that my master allowed me to tell you."

"I see…" Naruto frowned. "When will she meet me face to face again? It's been six months after all."

"You know how much work her duties are," The wolf replied. "You'd have to visit her yourself."

"I'd rather not risk dying," Naruto snorted. "I've already decided not to go past limbo unless I'm summoned."

"Then it's your own loss," The wolf grinned; somehow keeping the gesture from being threatening.

"It always was," Naruto muttered. He took a scroll out of his pocket and handed it to the wolf. "You can give this to her. I hope she appreciates how much work I had to do to get that."

"Dango and sake?" The wolf snorted. "You indulge her."

"I'd rather be on her good side than bad," Naruto softly replied. "After all, she could kill any of us with a simple thought."

"You do tend to deal with dangerous company," The wolf mused. "I wish you luck, Uzumaki-san."

Naruto nodded his thanks as the wolf trotted off. Naruto sighed and stared up at the stars. "I wonder what I did to deserve my life," He mused.

Naruto lay on his back and stared up at the stars. _"It's not comfortable here…"_

_**"It isn't meant for our kind."**_

_"How long until my transformation is undone?" _Naruto rubbed his temples.

_**"Ten minutes."**_

Naruto sighed and extended his chakra from his body. A few seconds later, a small door appeared out of nowhere, which Naruto stepped into.

_---12ish Hours Later---_

Naruto yawned as he emerged from the same door he'd entered 12 hours ago. His clothes and hair were somewhat singed, but with a quick wave of his hand; they were as good as new. _"I suppose it was good to go there for once…"_

_**"Except now you have to get more sake for next time," **__The Kyuubi pointed out._

Naruto began to weep, _"That sake cost so much!"_

To Be Continued.

_

* * *

---Deleted Scene---_

**(Continues from "Except now you have to get…")**

Naruto snorted. He wandered aimlessly for a few minutes, before deciding on a location: the Academy.

"It might be nice to see who'll be a new genin," Naruto mused.

_**"I wonder…"**_

_"The Hinote brat? I didn't know you cared," _Naruto yawned.

_**"It's an old name," **__The fox retorted defensively._

Naruto rolled his eyes. It was obvious what the fox was withholding. Especially considering Naruto knew everything that the so-called independent Kyuubi no Kitsune did.

Naruto jumped across rooftops to the Academy, and landed cleanly in front of the gates. He was about to walk in, when he noticed that the training grounds were being used. Upon closer inspection, he saw that it was being used by Iruka's class. Naruto grinned and ran up to the class, "Hey, Iruka-sensei! It's been a while."

Iruka turned around and looked Naruto up and down. He broke out into a grin. "Naruto! It's been a while. I thought you were still with Jiraiya-sama!"

"I got back about 5 days ago," Naruto replied. "So, is this the graduating class?"

"It will be," Iruka replied. "Did you come for any real reason?"

"Nah," Naruto waved his hand dismissively. "I just wanted to see how the future genin are going to turn out. I'm still trying to decide whether I should take a genin team or not."

"You're a Jōnin?" Iruka asked in surprise.

"I just got the vest yesterday," Naruto grinned. "So, what's your opinion on the soon-to-be genin? Is there anybody worth looking at?"

"Well, there's a few clan heirs in this class, but not as many as there were in yours," Iruka replied. "Hyūga Hanabi is said to be a genius. There's also Hinote Ukito, who already has a few A-Rank jutsu down."

"They're all fire jutsu, aren't they?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah," Iruka replied.

"So did Konohamaru graduate yet?"

"Somehow," Iruka replied with a chuckle. "He tried to pull off your graduating prank, though."

"I wish I was around to see that," Naruto frowned. "Wait, shouldn't you be watching your class?"

"I am," Iruka dryly replied.

Naruto scanned over the class and was able to pick out a few people from some of the smaller clans. He _did_ manage to see Hanabi (how anybody could miss the eyes was beyond him). As Naruto scanned over them, one of the few students who'd seen him turned his eyes to him and stared at him. Naruto blinked at his red eyes. They were the color of fire…

_**"So it is the same clan," **__The Kyuubi chuckled._

_"You know something about them?"_

_**"They made a pact with Hitomi-san when she was the Kyuubi."**_

_"Hmm…"_

Naruto watched as the boy scored a perfect 10/10 on shuriken and kunai throwing. When it came to sparring, he was matched up with Takahashi Saimei, one of the people from a civilian clan.

It was an easily decisive match. In the beginning, Ukito simply dodged, but as time passed; he became more and more ferocious. _"The style lures them into a false sense of security…" _Naruto mused. "There are a lot of weaknesses in that style," Naruto murmured to Iruka.

"He's just an academy student," Iruka dismissed Naruto's concerns.

"Still, the quality of our genin is lowering as time passes…" Naruto mused. "That's the problem with peace."

Iruka was about to reply, but he instead chose to call the match. Naruto's eyes narrowed when he saw Saimei's hands. Saimei was about to walk away, when Naruto stopped him. "Show me your hands," Naruto commanded.

"Why?" Saimei asked. "Who are you, anyways?"

"He's a Jōnin," Iruka replied for Naruto.

Saimei's eyes bulged out of their sockets. "That's so cool! You've got to be super strong, right? I want to be a Jōnin too! No wait, I'd rather be Hokage!"

Naruto blinked. "Alright… could I see your hands then?"

Saimei obliged, and Naruto frowned. They were heavily burnt. "Does this happen often when you fight him?"

"Yeah," Saimei groaned. "He'll just attack me and randomly enhance his attacks with fire!"

Naruto sighed and he formed a few quick seals. Iruka and Saimei watched in curiosity as a green glow enveloped Naruto's hands, and he ran his hands over Saimei's; healing the burns. "Alright, good as new," Naruto grinned.

"That was so cool!" Saimei cried. "Thanks so much, Jōnin-san! I wish I could be as awesome as you!"

_"He reminds me of what I could've been…" _Naruto stiffly replied, "Don't worry about it. Anyways, shouldn't you go with Iruka-sensei?"

Saimei eagerly nodded. "See you, Jōnin-san!"

Naruto shot a bemused look towards Iruka. "I get the feeling that there's one person in every class who wants to be the Hokage."

"It's a sad fact," Iruka sighed. "Where'd you learn medical jutsu?"

"I picked it up on my travels," Naruto replied. He walked over to Ukito, and sighed. "You're not aiming to kill your teammates."

"If they can't even dodge those attacks, then they deserve to get burnt," Ukito snidely replied. Naruto's eye twitched.

"I wonder if you have what it takes to make a Konoha genin," Naruto mused.

"What're you talking about, idiot?" Ukito scoffed. Naruto's hand twitched towards his kunai pouch. "Of course I'm ready to be a genin! I _am_ the class rookie!"

Naruto frowned. _"He reminds me of Sasuke…" _"Tell you what kid. I'll stand still, and if you can hit me with one of your fire jutsu, I'll teach you an S-Rank technique. If you can't, you'll grow up and stop being an arrogant kid."

Iruka was about to interrupt, when Naruto held up a hand to silence any protests. Iruka frowned, but watched on as Ukito grinned ruthlessly. He quickly formed seals and exhaled a large fireball. **"Katon: G**ō**kakyu no Jutsu!"**

Naruto rolled his eyes. Iruka was about to jump in, when Naruto stopped the fireball in front of him simply by holding out his hand. Naruto flicked the fireball away, and it flew just over Ukito's hair; singing it.

"I'd love to stick around, but I'm going to run before Obaa-chan throw me out of her window," Naruto rubbed his head. "See you, Iruka-sensei!"

Iruka blinked. Before he could wave back, Naruto disappeared in a pillar of fire.

_**"That was… tame."**_

_"I can't hurt him in public," _Naruto rolled his eyes.

"So, Naruto…" Naruto froze as he heard Tsunade's voice. "What did you think of the graduating academy students?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Naruto rubbed his head nervously.

"Is that so?" Tsunade's eye twitched. Naruto readied himself for the jaw-shattering punch.

He wasn't disappointed. It was only his quick idea to use chakra to stick to the ground that prevented him from flying. Instead, Naruto simply lost all of his teeth, which he promptly spit out. "Geez, Obaa-chan. Do you know how annoying it is to re-grow teeth?"

"Nope," Tsunade replied. "Just for interfering with Iruka's class, I'm going to have to force you to become a Jōnin sensei."

Naruto gaped. "No fucking way."

"That's what you get for assaulting a civilian," Tsunade grinned ruthlessly.

"I call self-defence!" Naruto whined.

"You're taking a genin team," Tsunade threatened him.

"Hell no!" Naruto yelled. "I'm allowed to refuse!"

"Gaki…" Tsunade muttered. Naruto's eyes widened and he looked down to see Tsunade's foot arching up… with super strength… towards his groin.

Naruto quickly used the Shunshin to move the hell out of the way. "The day I take and pass a genin team is the day hell freezes over!" Naruto yelled.

"I said the same thing once," Kakashi sadly murmured from a candy shop around the corner.

Meanwhile, demons were running around in hell. "Hell's freezing over!"

"Again?!" The largest demon yelled. "Kyuubi-sama won't be pleased!"

* * *

**Yup. I should probably raise the rating to M because of that scene with Hikari. I won't unless you ask, though. I can't find anything overly "M-Rated".**

**Anyways, that said, give me your opinions, what sucked, what didn't, etc, etc.**

**Question: Should Naruto get a genin team?  
**


	20. The Festival and More!

_We've passed the 100,000 word mark!_

**This story, uh, won't be NaruFemKyuuOC. I'm making another story for that purpose, when I get the time. It's actually quite a good idea. I'd elaborate, but I'm paranoid enough to believe you peepz will steel my gl0ryz. (Steal my glory).**

**Anyways, I don't show Naruto's mission, etc, etc. It's the Snow Country one btw. It might or might not be significant depending on what I decide later. I'm just a "Go-with-the-flow" kinda writer.**

**We also have a revelation that Naruto keeps hidden out of... something.**

**As for how Naruto got so strong... I'm gonna make up some excuse so it doesn't seem like he just woke up as a god one day... (That'd be epic.)**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Fanfiction, people would stop making 'if I owned Naruto...' disclaimers.**

**Disclaimer2: I own Hikari, 50% of Hitomi, and the personality of various characters. That's about it. I don't own Naruto.  
**

* * *

Naruto grinned as he looked at himself in the mirror. He was wearing a simple orange kimono which matched his hair – which was for once, completely combed – along with the same white cloak he'd worn since it had been gifted to him by Minato. The sleeves of this particular kimono were quite large, and they had a light shade of blue on the borders. Inside of his sleeves were concealed pouches of kunai, explosion tags, and various other items which he _really_ shouldn't have brought to a festival.

On the back of the kimono, hidden by his cloak, it had the image of a blood red moon blocking the sun, while being partially hidden by a series of clouds. He was wearing plain geta on his feet, and dangling from his neck was a small pendant in the shape of a star. At this particular moment, it glowed unnaturally red for a moment before stopping. His hitai-ite was hanging off of his blue obi.

"Yosh," Naruto grinned; imitating Gai, "Time to take Hi-chan out for a date!"

Naruto quickly jumped off to Hikari's apartment (the room right beside his) and knocked on the door. Hikari opened the door, and the first thing Naruto noticed was her reserved smile.

Then, he looked over her, and _nearly_ gasped. Most of her long hair was brought back by a simple purple hair clip. Parts of her hair were left loose, so that at the two sides of her head, her tresses would hang down from her temples to her cheeks on both ends. Her bangs were also left alone, along with a few locks of hair which were tucked behind her ears.

Hikari wore a simple golden yukata which had a pattern of iris plants repeating along the sleeves and the main body. Around the shoulders of her yukata, there were faint circles embroidered into the fabric. Her obi was a blend between emerald green, and forest green. On her feet, she wore zori with yellow straps on them.

Naruto slowly swept his gaze over her; memorizing the way the kimono hugged her curves, and how the obi accentuated her assets, drawing a small blush from Hikari. "You're beautiful," Naruto murmured.

"You're just saying that," Hikari replied; somewhat embarrassed.

"I don't lie," Naruto sharply replied. "Not to you."

Hikari's blush grew darker, and she was about to reply, when they heard the sound of somebody leaning against the wood. "My cute students are all grown up," Kakashi sniffled slightly.

Naruto raised an eyebrow at Kakashi's appearance, and was surprised to realize that: yes, Kakashi always wore his mask and shinobi gear. He also _always_ read his book. The moment that thought passed through his head, he absentmindedly patted one of the seals he had hidden on his person. _"He's wearing informal clothing during the day of his sensei's death," _Naruto mused. That was his first mistake. _"His chakra signature is also different, yet somewhat familiar… it's almost as if…"_

"Kakashi-sensei?" Hikari asked. "I thought you were going to be spending today at the bar…"

"There's plenty of time for that," Kakashi cheerily replied. "I hope you don't mind if I borrow Naruto-kun, do you?" Hikari looked startled for a moment. "Don't worry; I'll bring him back in two minutes."

Hikari sighed. "Alright then, go ahead…"

Kakashi nodded his thanks, and he jumped over a few rooftops to get away from her. When she was out of sight, Kakashi finally spoke. "There's some dire news, Naruto-kun."

"What would that be, Itachi-san?" Naruto asked with a light smile.

Itachi had the decency to look somewhat embarrassed for a moment, before dropping the henge and revealing his usual, stoic expression. "Akatsuki will be on the move soon."

Naruto frowned slightly, as he fingered his pendant. Itachi raised an eyebrow for a moment. "When do they plan on taking me?"

"Kisame-san and I are the ones who are supposed to retrieve you," Itachi replied. "I believe we would set out within three months."

"I think…" Naruto frowned. "Well, it would work best if we just stuck to the original idea."

"Are you sure? I doubt you can take on the entire group at once," Itachi frowned.

"Trust me, Itachi-san," Naruto rested a hand on Itachi's shoulder. "Just enjoy today. It's the day the great Kyuubi no Kitsune was captured because of one of your clansmen," Naruto narrowed his eyes. "In a few days, I'm going on an A-Rank mission. I'll see if I can make a _detour_."

_---30 Seconds Later---_

"Sorry about that," Naruto rubbed the back of his head apologetically.

"What were you guys talking about?" Hikari asked.

"Oh, he was just letting me know something important," Naruto vaguely replied. "So, are you ready to go?" Naruto asked with a grin as he held out his arm.

The corners of Hikari's lips turned slightly upwards, and she gracefully took his proffered arm as the pair walked towards the town square. When they caught sight of the festival, Hikari grinned and ran ahead; waving to Naruto. "What're you waiting for? Come on!" Naruto chuckled and sprinted to catch up with her. "So, what happened over your training trip?"

"Well…" Naruto trailed off.

_---Flashback---_

_**"Well congratulations, genius," **__The kit yipped. __**"I am now a kit, and you're stuck being the new Kyuubi no Kitsune. Enjoy yourself."**_

_Naruto gaped at the kit. "You can't be serious."_

_**"Oh, I am," **__The kit bore it's fangs at him. __**"If I were you, I'd hurry over to heaven. The gods would **__**love**__** to know that I've finally been taken out."**_

_Naruto winced. "Hitomi!"_

_**"Actually, even better! I'll just go with you, and retire! I know a few people who wouldn't mind taking care of me," **__Hitomi spat. __**"Now let's go!"**_

_Naruto winced again as Hitomi jumped onto his shoulder; intentionally digging her claws onto his arms. "If you insist," Naruto groaned. "Just how do I go there? Why do I have to go to heaven anyways?"_

_**"Find out yourself."**_

_'What'd I do to deserve this…?' Naruto mentally whined._

_**"Maybe you **__**shouldn't**__** have recklessly used an immensely straining technique?" **__A voice in his head suggested._

_---End Flashback---_

"Ah, nothing much…" Naruto hastily finished. "Anyways, what did _you _do while I was gone?"

"Well…" Hikari trailed off.

_---Flashback---_

_"I'm going to kill that bastard! He left while I was still in the hospital! That's just so infuriating!" Hikari yelled as she ate another scoop of ice cream._

_She went to put it into the fridge, but she happened to trip over a pouch lying on the ground, and she fell forwards. Luckily, the tub of ice cream lessened the impact. Unluckily, it was open and filled with chocolate ice cream._

_Various profanities could be heard._

_---End Flashback---_

"Nothing important," Hikari slowly replied.

The two of them shared knowing looks, and they burst out laughing. "So, where do you want to go first?" Naruto asked once he'd recovered from his bout of laughing.

"I want cotton candy!" Hikari cried; pretending to be a little child.

"If you say so," Naruto rolled his eyes.

They spent the next few hours at various stands; buying snacks, playing games, meeting with friends… Finally, the two of them had left the festival grounds in order to go to a more secluded spot, otherwise known as the Hokage monument.

Naruto sighed as he plopped himself onto the ground. "Geez, my legs hurt…"

"You're supposed to have legendary stamina," Hikari snorted. Suddenly, a red tinge appeared on her face as her implications sunk in.

"Oh really?" Naruto teased lightly. "Maybe you'd like to experience that _legendary stamina_, hmm?"

Hikari blushed even more; simply muttering, "Pervert…"

Struck by a sudden thought, Naruto opened his pouch and took out a scroll. Naruto quickly unravelled it, and grinned as two empty sake bottles popped out. He took out another scroll and placed the two bottles on top of the scroll while making a few quick seals. Hikari watched in silent amusement as the sake bottles began to fill up before her very eyes, and even started to warm.

"That was one hell of a seal to make," Naruto commented. "It took me about one month just to get the principles behind that seal. I had to delve into a subatomic level just to get that to work without fusing the sake bottle with the sake," Naruto grinned. "So, let's drink!"

Hikari blinked. "We're underage."

Naruto snorted and hid an orange book and notepad further inside his pouch, while putting the scrolls back in. "Who cares? We could just as easily die tomorrow."

Hikari rolled her eyes, but reached for the sake bottle nonetheless.

After 10 minutes of enjoyment, coughing, and various other non-noteworthy activities, the two companions stared up at the moon, basking in its ethereal glow. "It's a beautiful night," Naruto murmured.

Hikari hummed in agreement, and Naruto chuckled when he saw her try to get to her feet. Naruto pulled her towards him, and ignoring her protests, hugged her close to him. He chuckled slightly when he felt her shiver and press herself closer to him. "Ne, Hikari-hime," Naruto prodded.

Hikari looked up at Naruto through half-lidded eyes, and he was struck with how beautiful she looked. "Yeah?"

"I love you," Naruto murmured.

Hikari's lips turned upward into a small smile, and she sighed contently. "I love you too, Naruto-kun."

_"It's too big a risk to take now," _Naruto mused. _"I guess I'll have to wait for Akatsuki to confront me instead."_

_**"It's dangerous to let a foe choose the battlefield."**_

_"They won't be the ones choosing the battlefield," _Naruto replied. _"I'm on the verge of a breakthrough. If I can complete my project, I'll be able to easily win against Akatsuki."_

_**"Overconfidence is hardly an endearing trait," **__The Kyuubi snorted.._

_---One Month Later---_

Naruto quietly landed in front of the gate guards, and rolled his eyes when he noticed that they were unaware of his presence. Naruto coughed lightly, and the Chûnin on duty jumped up in surprise. Naruto stared bemusedly upon the Chûnin, who was quickly turning scarlet. "Could I, uh, see your papers?"

Naruto handed the Chûnin a sheet of paper, and he quickly read over it, before nodding. "Alright Namikaze-sama, you may enter."

Naruto raised an eyebrow at the use of his 'true' last name, and the respectful honorific, before quickly jumping to the Hokage tower. _"I guess she told them then."_

He stopped on the street below her window, and quickly jumped up; altering his trajectory midair so that he flew through the window and onto her couch. "Yo, Obaa-chan!" Naruto grinned; holding up one arm in a greeting.

Tsunade looked irritably at Naruto from her chair. Naruto blinked as he noted all the Jōnin in the room who were looking at him with expressions akin to horror, respect, and anxiety. Naruto stared at his raised arm, and then Tsunade's expression which was slowly becoming evil.

"Well then, since Naruto has decided to nominate himself to become a Jōnin sensei, I suppose I'll have to indulge him," Tsunade grinned.

Naruto's eyes widened in fear, "Oh hell no… I'm busy."

Tsunade snorted, "You shouldn't have raised your hand so casually then."

Naruto slowly raised himself to his full height, walked towards Tsunade, and looked her straight in the eyes. The two of them began a battle of will solely through their eyes.

"Tsunade-shishou, I've got—" Hikari began as she burst through the door with a load of paperwork. She blinked when she looked at Naruto and Tsunade who were staring at each other. Suddenly, Naruto turned his gaze towards the other Jōnin who were passively watching the display.

"I have something important to tell Hokage-sama, it is the result of one of my recent missions and could be considered an S-Class Secret," Naruto stated. Tsunade raised an eyebrow, and Hikari began to walk out of the room, when Naruto continued. "It has something to do with you, Hikari-san. Please stay."

Hikari frowned slightly at the use of a casual suffix.

"If I may, Namikaze-san, I don't believe you are in any position to dismiss us," One of the Jōnin wearing sunglasses stated.

Tsunade sighed and turned towards the others in the room. "Please leave, I'll summon you again once this discussion may continue." The shinobi slowly filed out of the room; grumbling all the way. Once they'd all left, Tsunade looked at Naruto again. "Just what is it you find to be so important, gaki?"

"Well, I'm sure Jiraiya and otou-san would like to know as well," Naruto rolled his eyes as Jiraiya and Minato sheepishly revealed themselves. Naruto casually placed left hand into his pocket. "It's about my body," Naruto continued. "I'm not human."

"Well we know this already," Tsunade replied; ignoring Hikari's slightly shocked look. "What does that have to do with the village's security?"

Naruto chuckled dryly. "This isn't my body."

_---Cue Commercial Break---_

"What?" Tsunade asked in shock.

"Yeah, like I said," Naruto repeated. "This isn't my real body. I've created it with pure chakra, and it'll only survive another two weeks." Naruto coughed into his palm, and withdrew it; showing Tsunade the blood. "As it stands, my chakra coils are far too large for any human to withstand. This body itself is dying, and I'll have to remake it. That takes about one week."

Hikari frowned. "Hold on a second, what do you mean you're not human?"

"I made a mistake," Naruto ran his hands through his hair exasperatedly. Minato and Jiraiya looked on sadly. "I screwed up badly, and because of that, Hitomi had to make me a full-blooded demon. The Kyuubi no Kitsune."

Hikari shrugged. "You're placing too much emphasis on this. Hitomi-san is alive, right?" At Naruto's hesitant nod, she continued. "You're Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto, right?" Naruto nodded once more. "Then where's the problem?"

Naruto smiled slightly. "That's true," He chuckled.

"So, you said you had something important to say about me?" Hikari prodded.

Naruto clenched his left hand around something in his pocket; ignoring the sharp edges digging into his skin. "It's nothing," He replied. "I just wanted you to know."

Hikari pursed her lips. "Alright then," She turned around and opened the door. Halfway through the doorway, she paused. "Oh, and Naruto-kun? You'd better tell me the truth when you're ready."

Naruto winced as she walked out of the door and silently shut it behind her.

_---Flashback---_

_"If the necklace accepts her as its wearer, then she and I are inextricably linked," A woman wearing bright clothes stated._

_"In what way?" Naruto cocked his head to the side; ignoring the growing foreboding deep within the pit of his stomach._

_"If it truly accepts her… then she is my reincarnation."_

_Naruto winced. "Are you absolutely sure?"_

_"As sure as I can be," She confidently replied._

_Naruto sighed slightly. "Alright then… I'll see if it accepts her or not, Amaterasu-sama…"_

_"Amate-san is fine," Amaterasu dismissed his respect with a wave of her hand. "We are nearly on equal standing after all."_

_Naruto chuckled bitterly. "Of course, Amate-san…"_

_---End Flashback---_

Naruto clenched the necklace again within his hand, and turned back to Tsunade, who was staring at him expectantly. "The mission was a success. Izumi no Kuni, formerly known as Yuki no Kuni, will soon be available for trades. They expect to open a Hidden Village soon."

_---Flashback---_

_"You're willing to give up on your own subordinates, your own people?!" Naruto yelled. "I became a shinobi to prevent this from happening, and I'll be damned if I let it happen now!"_

_Kazahana Koyuki stared in shock as Naruto leapt in the path of the projectiles and split into ten people, then twenty, and finally forty, proceeding to destroy all the projectiles with a single kunai._

_"Why…?" She heard herself muttering. "Why don't you just give up?!"_

_Naruto levelled his gaze with her. "Because that's my ninja way!"_

_**"Corny brat…"**_

_---End Flashback; Cue 2__nd __Flashback---_

_"Until the end, I kept running away," Koyuki murmured while crying. "At the very least…"_

_Koyuki's hands moved to her neck; trying to dislodge the hands which were currently strangling her._

_Naruto clenched his fist and something inside him broke. Within two seconds, Koyuki was in Naruto's grasp, and Kazahana __Dotō was sprawled out on the floor, blood leaking from his arms and legs. Naruto's eyes narrowed, and he kicked Dotō mercilessly. "Get up, scum." Dotō slowly got up, and spat into Naruto's face. Naruto's eyes narrowed further, and he slowly wiped the spit off. "You made two mistakes today… Do you want to know what they are?"_

_"The only person who's making a mistake is you!" Dotō yelled._

_Naruto chuckled darkly. "First mistake: you killed Kazahana Sōsetsu and attempted to kill his defenceless daughter… Second mistake: you ordered your shinobi to kill your own niece, and allowed them to fight me. Finally, your last mistake… Choking your own niece to death." Naruto slowly lifted up his hitai-ite, and Dotō knew true fear. "Do you see this eye, Kazahana Dotō? This eye is an eye bought in blood. The blood of loved ones. It brings immense power, but with it, immense darkness." Naruto chuckled again._

_"Today, you will witness the most devastating attack ever…" Naruto's face split into a feral grin, and he looked towards Koyuki, who was being healed by one of his clones. __**"Tsukuyomi (Moon Reader)."**_

_The entire world distorted in front of Dotō, and he found himself tied to a cross. "For the next two years, you will experience unspeakable pain. You will be forced to watch as your limbs are cut off slowly, and when there's nothing left, you'll start over again. When you get used to that…" Naruto trailed off with a dark chuckle._

_Outside of Naruto's fury-induced genjutsu, Dotō collapsed onto the ground, and began seizing. Naruto took a kunai and slowly drilled it into one of his pressure points; causing Dotō immense pain. After a minute of watching Dotō spasm, Naruto finally granted him mercy, and slit his throat. Naruto stared stoically at the fountain of blood gushing out of Dotō's neck, and spat out the small amount that made it inside his mouth. "It tastes like crap…" Naruto murmured._

_---End Flashback; Cue 3__rd__ Flashback---_

_Koyuki stared in wonderment as the snow began to melt. Naruto raised an eyebrow at the device, and studied it for a moment. "A seals master, huh…?" Naruto murmured. Suddenly, he heard a distinct whistling noise through the air, and pushed Koyuki down on the ground, just as a kunai was about to hit her. Naruto turned to glare at the blue-haired intruder. "I'm not even going to tell you what you did wrong…"_

_Naruto held out his palm, and began forming a Rasengan. He poured his anger, his resentment, and his very being into the Rasengan. The blue-haired ninja backed away in fear as the Rasengan began to gain all colors of the rainbow. __**"Rasengan!" **__Naruto roared as he thrust his hand into the chest of the shinobi._

_Naruto turned to Koyuki, who was staring in awe. With a cheeky grin, he handed Koyuki a three-pronged kunai which had seals etched upon it. "This kunai was my father's. I really don't like using it, but just throw it on the ground if you ever need me."_

_---End Flashback---_

Tsunade raised an eyebrow. "Alright then, anything else I need to know?"

"I don't want a genin team," Naruto deadpanned.

"Sorry to burst your bubble, gaki, but all Hokage need to have taken on at least two students," Jiraiya called from the corner.

Naruto furrowed his brow. _"Hokage, huh?"_

_---Flashback---_

_"I'm Uzumaki Naruto and I'm gonna be Hokage!" Naruto loudly proclaimed to nobody in particular._

_---End Flashback---_

_"Do I really still want that…?" _Naruto sighed. "Alright then… Just give me Team Seven."

Jiraiya chuckled. "Going for tradition there, gaki?"

Naruto gave a feral grin, "Oh, no. I plan to give a _far_ more innovative genin exam." Jiraiya raised an eyebrow, and Naruto elaborated, "Training Ground 44."

Jiraiya paled. Tsunade gaped. Minato grinned.

Elsewhere, one Mitarashi Anko felt as if she would soon be having the time of her life.

"You can't be serious," Tsunade deadpanned.

Naruto shrugged. "It'll just be a three-day survival course. If they can live through that, then they'll probably even pass the Chûnin exams."

"Why would they go there? The closest Chûnin exams are being held in Kirigakure no Sato," Jiraiya frowned.

"Oh, I have my reasons," Naruto cryptically replied. "Besides, it's not as if I don't have any connections there."

Tsunade raised an eyebrow. Jiraiya somehow got the wrong impression and gained a lecherous expression. Minato began to nod off to sleep.

Naruto jumped out of the window. "Alright, enjoy telling the council that I'm a demon, and that I'll be taking a genin team. Oh, and by the way, I'll need a sub for when I go to rebuild my body."

Tsunade groaned. "Oi gaki, you're picking up your team tomorrow!"

Naruto waved from the window as he jumped towards an unknown location. After a few minutes, Naruto landed outside of a bookstore, and inconspicuously walked inside. He nodded to Kakashi, who was browsing the 'perverted' section. "Hey, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto whispered.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow in a questioning manner. Naruto slipped Kakashi an orange book, and Kakashi's eyes widened in shock. "Is this…?"

"Of course," Naruto grinned. "Written by Ero-sennin and co-written by me. Oh, but don't tell anybody."

Kakashi nodded sagely. "I understand… So, what's new in your life, Naruto-sama?"

Naruto blinked. "Naruto-_sama_?"

"You helped with Icha Icha," Kakashi sobbed. "That's enough for me.

Naruto snorted. "I have to take a genin team. I plan to put them through the most gruelling genin test ever experienced."

Kakashi stared at Naruto's slightly sadistic smirk. _"The second coming of Minato-sensei, Anko-san, the Kyuubi no Kitsune, and god knows who else…" _"Do you need any advice?"

Naruto frowned thoughtfully. "Hmm, I think you'd suggest I come late, test them on teamwork without them knowing, and basically manipulate them."

Kakashi smiled underneath the mask. "Yup."

"That's ANBU-style, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto snorted. "I'm going for something _far_ more rigorous… I'm going to break them down and build them back up…" Naruto blinked when he saw Kakashi's stare. "What? I was kidding!"

Kakashi rolled his eyes; missing the quick speed with which Naruto grabbed the first volume of the Icha Icha series.

_---Next Day---_

Naruto blinked as he looked at the clock. It was 2:00, one hour before he was supposed to pick up his genin team. With a shrug, Naruto packed his gear, and took out an orange book, slowly walking towards the Academy. Naruto let out the occasional giggle, ignoring all the revering stares sent his way by the villagers. On a subconscious level, it disgusted him that they loved him as the Minato's son, but hated him as the container of the Kyuubi no Kitsune.

Naruto let out another perverted giggle.

_Saimei trailed light kisses over Isae's pale, upper body; purposely ignoring her breasts. Isae moaned in need as her body was touched with what seemed like liquid fire. Saimei meticulously made his way towards her…_

Naruto blinked. _"That's interesting. Wasn't Saimei the name of one of the Academy students?"_ He looked around to find his surroundings, but was miffed when there were no street signs, buildings, anything. He was simply on a long gray road. Naruto snapped his book shut, and sighed. He lifted his hitai-ite upwards; deciding to leave it as such until he left the village… If he was still inside of it. As Naruto looked around with his Sharingan, he noticed a sign in the distance.

Naruto quickly made his way towards the sign and blinked. He read it once, blinked again, and then read it a second time, and his mouth dropped. The sign said 'Road of Life'

"Fancy seeing you here, Naruto-kun," Kakashi greeted as he stepped beside him.

"The road of life, huh?" Naruto mused. "I didn't know it existed."

Kakashi chuckled, and the two of them took out their books in unison; letting out perverted giggles every so often.

_---Three Hours Later---_

"He's late!" The one of the last remaining girls in the room shouted. She had long blonde hair which went down to the middle of her back, and she wore a black t-shirt and blue pants. Her grey eyes were filled with anger, and loathing. She hated two things in the world: perverts and tardiness.

Naruto picked that moment to walk in front of the door. He looked beside him to see Sasuke. "Yo, temee, what're you doing here?"

Sasuke shrugged. "Picking up my genin team. What about you, dobe?"

"Same here," Naruto replied. "We copy Kakashi-sensei too much," Naruto shook his head slightly.

Naruto opened the door and blinked as an eraser landed on the floor. He looked at the eraser, then at the genin who was trying not to jump out of his seat and point at Naruto. Naruto sighed. "Team 7, meet me on the roof."

Naruto disappeared in a pillar of flames, leaving the grumbling genin to walk up to the roof.

When they were on the roof, Naruto had them sit down. "Alright, tell me about yourself. Your name, likes, dislikes, dreams for the future, etc."

The first person to start was a black-haired boy with red eyes; wearing completely black clothing. It somehow reminded Naruto of a cross between his old orange jumpsuit, and Gai's green spandex.

"My name is Hinote Ukito; I like fire, dislike water, and my dream for the future… I don't have one."

Naruto winced when he heard the girl beside him squeal. _"You have got to be fucking kidding me." _Naruto nodded encouragingly to Ukito, who'd taken to glaring at Naruto.

"I'm Yamamato Isae," She stated in a matter-of-fact tone. Naruto tried not to remember what he'd just read. "I like…" She stared dreamily at Ukito. "I dislike Saimei, perverts, and late people! My dreams for the future…" She stared at Ukito again, with stars in her eyes. Naruto fought a losing battle not to throw up.

The next person to talk was a boy with chestnut-brown hair and green eyes. Naruto noted the hideous amount of _lime-green_ he was wearing. "Listen up, Jōnin-san! I'm Takahashi Saimei and I like Isae-chan, dislike Ukito-temee, and I'm going to be Hokage!"

Naruto blinked. "That's an interesting dream," Naruto conceded.

Saimei grinned in response; ignoring the snorts of Isae and Ukito. Naruto _tried_ not to reach into his pouch. He also tried _not _to read the orange book. He failed miserably. "Alright, we'll be doing a training exercise tomorrow, failing rate of 66%, if you fail you get sent back to the Academy… etc. Did I miss anything?" Naruto asked; ignoring their dumbfounded expressions. "No? Alright then, meet me at Training Ground 44 tomorrow at noon. Tell your parents you won't be back for at least a few days. I won't let you bring anything other than your equipment into the training ground."

"That means no change of clothes, no food, no water, no soldier pills; nothing save for the clothes on your back and your weapons," Naruto grinned. He quickly took off when he noticed they were still in shock.

5 minutes later, Saimei finally spoke up, "He never told us his name!"

_---The Next Day; Training Ground 44---_

The genin gazed up at the large trees towering over them. "What is this place…?" Saimei asked in shock.

"It's called the forest of death," Naruto replied as he stepped out from behind one of the trees. "Anyways, your objective is to stay within the forest _and survive_ for three days. During that time, I will replace one of you, and you have to find who I am. If you can't figure it out yourself, then you go back to the academy. Any questions? No? Alright then, enjoy!" Naruto rushed through his speech as he tossed the genin into the training grounds.

Naruto watched them scamper off, and then yawned. "Hmm, maybe I should hang out with Hikari-chan for the next three days…"

To Be Continued.

* * *

**Funny, huh? He gets Saimei, Ukito, and that fangirl... Did I portray her as a fangirl?**

**Anyways, yeah, it's a FoD test. I did it like that cuz Naruto isn't gonna dilly-dally (i feel abused for using those words) like Kakashi did in canon. He's gonna train them hard.**

**So, Naruto's real body isn't human, huh? Interesting, amirite? I got the idea from a fic I read where Naruto was dying because his chakra coils were becoming too large. It sounds painful as hell...**

**Anyways, yada yada yada. Go read Guardian of Fire, it's an interesting twist on the old time-travel thing.**

**Lastly: I read NaruIta... I don't know whether to feel shell-shocked or not. Mostly cuz there were no lemons, and it had a decent plot. I've realized that it's not yaoi I hate... it's the lemons... and my uncanny ability to visualize everything I read.**

**-Laterz**

**BTW: RE: The story I'm gonna make: It won't be out until I've finished Oretachi no Sadame. I might make a sequel to OnS, Idk. I'll prob make a sister story in which Naruto goes back in time. It'll be called... No, sorry, too paranoid to tell you.**


	21. Revelations

**Yay! Angst-fest!**

**Either way, I meant to release this tmrw. My good friend Darkfire (who tells me if my ideas are too far-fetched or not) didn't give it back yet. So, I released it as-is with a few changes. In any case, I changed chapter 9 (finally) to say that Hikari isn't a hanyo. Took me long enough, huh?**

**Now, we find out if Hikari is the (re?)incarnation of Amaterasu or not. This chapter would have a lemon, but it doesn't fit in with what I need. Thus, I'll write a lemon later.**

**FYI: I'm working on another story (which won't be released until I've written like 5 chapters, or this story's finished) and I've got an idea for an original story (not fanfiction, something I could actually publish) that I might write and put up on FP or send to a publisher. IDK yet.**

**Just know that a publisher would prob write my work off as crap.**

**Enjoyz!**

**(This first bit could be considered an omake with plot-relevance)  
**

* * *

Naruto sighed and wrote something on a piece of paper. "I see your 'eternal use of Amaterasu', and I raise you one infallible torture technique."

**"I see your infallible torture technique, and I raise you one judgement jutsu," **The Shinigami replied; sliding a similar piece of paper across the table.

Tsukuyomi raised an eyebrow. "I see your judgement jutsu and I raise you partial control of the moon."

Everybody was silent. "Wow," Naruto blinked. "That's a lot."

"I fold," Hotei sighed after a moment of silence.

Everybody paled. If _he_ folded…

Jashin winced. "I fold too, in that case."

Naruto grinned as he revealed his hand. "I've got a royal flush."

All of the other deities in the room groaned. "How the hell did you beat Hotei-san? He's a god of luck!" Amaterasu exclaimed.

Naruto grinned. "I don't know."

"I wish I knew how," Hotei mumbled.

Naruto continued to grin as he took the I.O.U.'s from the gods who'd just betted against him. The Shinigami mentally swore that Naruto would eventually become one of the deities of luck. "Anyways, Shinigami-san. Since you were kind enough to offer a judgement jutsu, I'll tell you my torture technique anyways."

The Shinigami leaned in, with a toothy grin on his face. When Naruto whispered his idea into the Shinigami's ear, the Shinigami burst out laughing. **"That's ingenious!"**

"What is it?" Tsukuyomi whined. "I've always wanted to torture somebody!"

**"It's better if I just show you," **The Shinigami replied while he continued to chuckle.

_"Gai-sensei!" Lee called; tears streaming down his face. His regular green jumpsuit was missing, and he was only wearing a green Speedo and orange legwarmers._

_"Lee!" Gai called in response as tears streamed down his own face. His attire was similar to Lee's, except his legwarmers were blue._

_"Gai-sensei!" Lee ran towards Gai, and the two embraced. The sun began to visibly set._

"I wish I'd never played poker with that man's ancestors," Amaterasu groaned.

Naruto chuckled. "So that's why you didn't make the same mistake as Tsukuyomi-san?"

"I wish I'd learned that lesson," Tsukuyomi groaned. After a small pause, she continued. "By the way, shouldn't you be testing your team?"

Naruto shrugged. "What's the worst that could happen?"

The table burst out in laughs.

"The worst that could happen…" Jashin mused. "They could turn into sacrifices for me."

Amaterasu blinked. "They're still doing that?"

"Yeah," Jashin snorted. "They don't understand that I want _evil_ souls. It's no fun eating the good ones."

"Yeah," Naruto sighed. "They taste like… headless chickens…"

_Naruto bit his finger and hit the ground with his hand. __**"Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Niwatori! (Summoning Technique: Chicken)"**_

_A plume of smoke appeared, and Naruto blinked as… a headless chicken emerged._

"That was funny," Jashin commented. "I nearly shit myself laughing."

Naruto furrowed his brows. "It was _so_ not funny…"

"So…" Amaterasu intervened. "Did you give Hikari the necklace yet?"

All of the table's occupants leaned in, and Naruto winced. "No…" He trailed off slightly.

"Why would that be?"

"You know exactly why," Naruto replied. "If she's a human, then we can be mates. If she's your reincarnation, then when she dies… her soul will be returned to you."

The Shinigami sighed slightly. **"It's true… I'm afraid that not even I can do something about that."**

"You would rather that she didn't know?" Amaterasu queried.

"I'll…" Naruto faltered slightly. "I'll give her the necklace soon. I just need to come to terms with the possibility. I might have good luck on the table, but when all the cards are down…" Naruto chuckled bitterly. "I always get dealt with the losing hand."

He spread his latest hand upon the table with a sigh. There was an 8 of hearts and an 8 of spades.

All of them winced. "I'll be testing my new genin," Naruto sighed.

Before anybody could say anything else; Naruto stepped through a door which randomly appeared. Jashin sighed, "Poor kid. His soul isn't as pure anymore."

"Oh?" Amaterasu asked. "How so?"

**"Just as Jashin-san said. He cares for that girl far too much," **The Shinigami replied. **"You're sure you do not wish to reconsider?"**

"Not unless he can prove himself," Amaterasu murmured.

_---The Forest of Death – 6 Hours Before End of Test---_

"Ah! What the hell is that?" Saimei yelled in shock. There was a huge caterpillar chasing him. "Damn it! Why the hell did we split up?!"

From behind a bush, Naruto sighed. It seemed almost as if their teamwork sucked…

_"Hmm, let's see… maybe if I go attack him in plain sight of the others…" _Naruto mused. _"No… I have the perfect strategy!"_

_---3 Hours Before End of Test---_

Naruto giggled perversely as he dodged another blazing kick from Ukito. He casually brought his arm upwards, and it blocked a strike from Isae. Isae jumped back to catch her breath, while Saimei took her place and sent a spinning kick towards Naruto's head. Naruto casually ducked and flipped to the next page of his orange book. _"That isn't part of the academy taijutsu. Funny how it's always the 'dobe' that shows everybody up"_

_**"When you're at the bottom, you can only go up,"**__ The Kyuubi snorted. __**"You have 3 days, 5 hours and 15 minutes left until your body dies."**_

Naruto sighed. Without any warning; he snapped his book shut and put it inside of his pouch. Naruto casually brushed some of his golden hair away from his eyes and grinned. "Well, I guess it's time to take it up a notch."

Ukito and Saimei doubled their ferocity, and Naruto gracefully weaved between kicks, punches, bouts of fire, and other attacks. Finally, when he was getting bored; he removed some ninja wire, unravelled it, and grinned. Naruto quickly pushed Saimei towards Isae; who'd just recovered, and Saimei landed on top of her; his left knee in-between her legs and his hand on her breast. Naruto released another perverted giggle and tossed Ukito into what would likely become a warzone. Before any of them could move, Naruto tossed the ninja wire around them and restrained them.

Naruto stared at the fuming genin, and started dragging them off towards the exit without speaking one word. When he was near the exit; he was intercepted by a purple-haired blur. "Naruto-kun!" Anko yelled gleefully.

Naruto ducked under Anko's path, and sighed. "Anko-nee, I'm working here…"

"You're no fun," Anko pouted. "You should've invited me!" Anko took out a kunai and slowly licked the edge of it. "I need some fresh blood!"

Naruto snorted. "I'd rather not expose them to you yet."

"Come on," Anko whined. "Just start the test over again! Nobody would know!"

"Well…" Naruto drawled.

_---Flashback, One Day Ago---_

_"Just why aren't you testing your genin team?" Tsunade groaned as she ran her hand through her hair in exasperation._

_"I was chilling out with some deities?" Naruto responded in a questioning tone._

_Tsunade sighed, "I don't even know if that's a lie… You know that you're screwed if any of them die in there, right?"_

_"I don't let my comrades die," Naruto quickly replied; settling his steely gaze upon Tsunade._

_"Then test your team like you're supposed to!"_

_---End Flashback---_

"Yeah, no thanks," Naruto mumbled. "Obaa-chan would have my head for that. Besides, I _don't have _three days…"

"You're no fun," Anko repeated. "If you ever need anybody to teach them a lesson, let me know!" Anko chirped as she ran into the forest.

Naruto rolled his eyes and turned his gaze towards his group of genin. Not that they knew they'd passed. "Sensei…?" Saimei asked hesitantly. "Please don't ever bring us to meet her again…"

Naruto chuckled slightly, and tossed the three genin – who were still in compromising positions – outside of the forest. He casually sat down beside them, took a stick of pocky, and ate it. "So… What did you guys think you did incorrectly? Actually, no, scratch that. Do you think you passed?"

"Of course we passed!" Saimei yelled enthusiastically; while moving his hand – which, incidentally, was still on Isae's breast – causing Isae to let out a light moan.

"Alright, what about you, Ukito-kun?" Naruto asked.

"I refuse to fail," Ukito replied.

"Isae-kun?"

"Of course Ukito-kun passed!" She squealed.

_"Let's see… how to kill the 'fan-girl virus'…"_ Naruto mused. "Alright, you pass, I'll see you guys later since you get the next two weeks off. I expect you three to train. Especially you Isae-kun, you need more stamina. Ukito-kun needs more restraint and variety, while Saimei-kun…" Naruto frowned thoughtfully. "Saimei-kun should work on strategy."

Before they could reply, Naruto jumped off. They were all silent for a moment, and Saimei frowned. "Aren't we still tied together?"

"He still didn't give us his name!" Isae shrieked.

A small piece of paper took that moment to land in front of them. "What's it say?" Saimei asked.

Ukito strained his vision. "It says… 'My name is Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto'."

Naruto coughed lightly as he jumped towards the Hokage tower. Once he removed his hand from his mouth, he lightly moved the coppery liquid around in his mouth and spat it out onto the grass. "Team 7 passed," Naruto stated when he landed on the windowsill.

"Any observations?" Tsunade asked.

"Ukito is good with fire, but he's far too arrogant to actually improve. By my reckoning, Saimei's a taijutsu genius, and he's probably good with ninjutsu as well. Isae… She might make a good medic-nin, and probably a good genjutsu-user," Naruto replied. "Can I leave now? I gave them two weeks off, and I _really_ need to go before we feel an immense explosion of power and Konoha implodes."

Tsunade paused. "Konoha would implode?"

"Yeah," Naruto replied. "It's somewhat annoying, but at least I know that it's not the best thing to do inside of civilization."

"Hm," Tsunade mused. "Alright, how about you go to Tsuchi no Kuni for this implosion?"

Naruto blinked. "Is there any particular reason? The Tsuchikage and the Tsuchi no Daimyo are huge fans of the new-and-improved Icha Icha…" Naruto mused.

"I'm not going to ask," Tsunade muttered. "They've been getting bolder, and we've been attacked during missions more than once. Just stay outside of Iwa's borders, but sent a message."

"Alright," Naruto sighed. "Anything else I need to be aware of?"

"There'll be one team in the area," Tsunade replied. "Try not to harm them."

"I'll try," Naruto replied. "I'll see you soon."

Tsunade smiled lightly as she watched him go back.

"Hokage-sama, you said that you had a mission for me?" Hikari asked as she opened the door.

"Alright, so this mission is to Tsuchi no Kuni," Tsunade began.

_---Seven Days Later---_

"What was that explosion of power?!" One of the Iwa shinobi asked/hyperventilated.

"I don't know!" Another one responded.

"Well the Tsuchikage will want to know! We've lost half of our livestock from that!" The last shinobi yelled. After five more minutes of arguing, they finally moved to a different location.

At that exact moment, Hikari jumped down from the tree she was hiding on, and clutched her arm in pain. She slumped against the tree and hissed as the rough bark made contact with her bare back. Hikari sat on the ground and looked at her leg. "Damn," She muttered. "It'll be out of commission for six days, and I can't heal it because of all the Iwa shinobi…"

_---Flashback---_

_Hikari groaned silently as she saw the army of shinobi in front of her. She knew that no matter how powerful she was, she wouldn't be able to defeat all of them without taking a few life-threatening injuries. She also knew that, since she was bordering on chakra exhaustion, she wouldn't be able to use Amaterasu._

_"Well, well, well," One of the shinobi laughed. "Isn't she a pretty little thing? Don't worry honey, I'll treat you just fine," he drawled._

_Hikari gritted her teeth. "To hell with restrictions!"_

_Before that shinobi could say anything else, he was hit with three kunai, landing in his head, chest and groin respectively._

_The entire clearing burst into activity, and soon, there were only 15 people left. Through the fight, Hikari had sustained some painful, yet non-lethal injuries. There were several shuriken sticking out of her back, a few kunai were sticking out of her right leg, and her arm was sprained. Hikari gritted her teeth and fled as fast as she could; leaving her pursuers in the dust._

_---End Flashback---_

Her head snapped up as she heard a twig snap, and she looked up to see… a fox with golden fur? Hikari's eyes widened as the fox trotted up to her, sniffed her, and curled up beside her. "That was weird…" Hikari murmured.

The fox yipped.

"A fox that can understand what I can say…" Hikari mused. "Are you a Yoko?"

The fox nodded its head.

Hikari blinked. "How many tails do you have?"

The fox looked up at her and tilted its head. Hikari sighed. The fox suddenly scampered off and Hikari watched with a frown as it came back with something in its maw. Hikari leaned down to examine the item, only to see… a golden necklace shaped like the sun, and a silver star-shaped necklace shaped. The fox dropped the two necklaces onto the ground, and curled up defensively beside them. When Hikari tried to touch the golden necklace – which seemed eerily familiar – the fox growled at her, and she brought her hand back.

"Fine," She muttered.

Thus, the two living beings, Hikari and the fox, made a small companionship. Since Hikari had wounds on her back, legs and arms; the fox would bring her food while she bandaged and cleaned her wounds; while Hikari would defend the fox from any large predators. However, there eventually came a time when Hikari had to leave for Konoha.

"I'm going to go now," Hikari stated as she petted the fox. The fox let out a small purr of contentment, and Hikari had to suppress a laugh. "I'm going in a few minutes."

The fox snapped out of its mini-trance and went toward its small stash of jewellery (read: the two necklaces). The fox picked up the golden necklace with its maw, and handed it to Hikari, who stared at the fox questioningly. She could've sworn she saw a small trace of sadness inside its eyes.

"For me?" She asked. The fox yipped affirmatively, and Hikari found it somewhat amusing that she was able to tell whether the fox – who she suspected to be male – was saying 'yes' or 'no'.

Hikari gently took the necklace from its maw, and put it on. As soon as she clasped the two ends of the chain together, it began to glow brightly, before the light faded. Hikari shot a questioning look towards the fox, who gave her what she assumed to be a sad smile.

Before Hikari could say anything, the fox grabbed the silver necklace within its teeth and scampered off. Hikari touched the necklace, and a light frown made its way onto her face.

With a small sigh, Hikari quickly made her way towards Konoha; trying to get the images of the fox's mournful cerulean eyes out of her head. Suddenly, Hikari's eyes widened. "Cerulean…?" She muttered.

The fox let out a small growl as eight more golden tails emerged from its tailbone. After a moment, the fox began to mutate in shape, until it turned into a human with nine fox tails and fox ears on the top of his head. After another minute, the fox ears receded, as did the tails. Naruto chuckled sadly, "So it's true, huh?"

_**"It's a shame," **__The Kyuubi remarked. __**"She would've made a great mate."**_

Naruto sighed as he wore the crescent-shaped necklace. Suddenly, a bitter laugh forced its way out of his mouth. "That's hilarious," He muttered. "I fell in love with the reincarnation of Amaterasu, and even if Hikari reciprocates my feelings, a bond between demon and god…"

Naruto wiped a lone tear away from his eye and stared at it in confusion for a moment. "Why am I crying…?" He muttered.

_**"It's not impossible. You love her and she loves you, doesn't she?"**_

Naruto frowned thoughtfully.

_"I'll never give up!" Naruto yelled. "'Cuz that's my nindo!"_

"I'll never give up," Naruto muttered as he wiped the tears away from his eyes. "Because that's my nindo!"

_**---Cue Perfect Place to End… AKA **__A Few Days Later; In Konoha---_

Naruto groaned as he experimentally moved his shoulders. "My muscles are stiff, damn it!"

Naruto blinked as he walked into training ground 7 and saw all of his students. "I could've sworn I gave you guys two weeks off," Naruto stated.

"It's been two weeks already, sensei!" Saimei yelled. "Now come on! We've been waiting for 2 hours!"

"2 hours?" Naruto asked. "Damn, I'm early. Alright, we have 6 months to train you three to be the best genin you can possibly be!"

"Yosh!" Saimei yelled enthusiastically.

"Why six months, sensei?" Isae asked.

"I'm considering whether or not I should enter you in the Chûnin exams," Naruto replied. "They'll be in Kirigakure no Sato in six months."

Ukito smirked, "Sounds like a good idea."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Alright, what we'll be doing today… is a survival exercise!"

The incessant groaning of the new team 7 could be heard up until it was time for them to go home.

"Survival training, huh?" Hikari asked as she jumped down from the tree.

"Yeah," Naruto replied after a brief pause. "So, anything interesting happen while I was gone?"

"Now that you mention it," Hikari nodded thoughtfully. "I met a golden Kitsune during a botched up mission. It seemed to take a liking to me."

"Is that so?" Naruto asked casually. "Sounds like you're good with animals."

"That's not it," Hikari interrupted him. "It took care of me and everything. It even gave me a necklace once I left."

"I guess the Kitsune clan _really_ likes you," Naruto stated after a small pause.

"Its eyes were _blue_, Naruto," Hikari muttered. "You were that Kitsune weren't you?"

"I suppose I was," Naruto conceded. "But then again, I _am_ a demon, right?"

Hikari furrowed her brows. "Why did you give me the necklace?"

"It was a gift," Naruto responded after a moment's pause. "I also wanted to see something…"

"What was that?" Hikari asked cautiously.

"I wanted to see if it was truly yours."

Hikari narrowed her eyes. "You're hiding something."

"'A ninja's best weapon is deception'," Naruto quoted.

"And a ninja is a mere tool," Hikari murmured. "Naruto… what am I to you?" His eyes slightly widened in shock, and he paused slightly. When he didn't respond, a bitter smile began to form on Hikari's face, and she walked away slowly. "Until you've decided; I'm Hikari. You're Naruto. Not Naruto-koi or Naruto-kun."

Naruto's head snapped up, and he made a quick decision. "Everything," Naruto murmured. Hikari turned back and stared at Naruto expectantly. "You're everything to me, Hi-hime… You're my night, my day, my life…" Naruto kept his voice level, and he stared Hikari straight in the eyes. "You're the person I love."

Hikari smiled softly. "I love you too, Naruto-koi. Now why don't you tell me what you're _really_ hiding?" She asked; her voice talking on a steely tone.

Naruto gulped. He knew that if he didn't answer, he'd lose a very important part of his anatomy. _"Wait, would she risk it? Can I grow it back…?"_

_**"Do you want to?"**_

Naruto paled. "I… I can't tell you."

Hikari narrowed her eyes. "It wasn't a question."

"I…" Naruto furrowed his brows. "I can't tell you. It's too…" He lowered his gaze to the ground.

"If you can't tell her, then I can," Naruto heard from behind Hikari. Naruto's eyes snapped up and he saw Amaterasu wearing a confident smirk. She was standing behind Hikari, wearing a light yellow yukata.

"Who're you?" Hikari asked.

Amaterasu nodded gravely at Naruto, and he hung his head once again when she snapped her fingers, and the two of them disappeared in a bright flash of light.

Naruto sighed as he plopped himself onto the ground and watched the sunset.

"You shouldn't hide these things from those you're destined to be with," A wolf stated as it trotted up to Naruto and sat beside him.

"I can't come to terms with the truth," Naruto chuckled bitterly. "She'll probably start avoiding me once she learns that we can't be together. Just as well, it takes away a lot of pain."

"You're being a coward," The wolf growled. "If you love her, then _fight for her_!"

Naruto glared at the fox. "I am not a coward," Naruto growled back.

"Oh really?" The two-tailed wolf taunted. "You chose to wait until she was outside of Konoha to give her the necklace, you didn't tell her who she is…"

"What would you have me do?" Naruto asked in exasperation. "I haven't felt anything like this, and I don't want it to end! I was hoping that if I just left it…"

The wolf shook its head sadly. "I told you something when I came here today. 'You shouldn't hide things from those you're _destined to be with_'," The wolf stated. "Until you can recognize the truth, you _won't_ deserve her; you _will_ be a coward… Just know this, Naruto-san: the gods work in mysterious ways."

The wolf disappeared, and Naruto could've sworn he heard the words 'Look underneath the underneath,' riding on the wind.

"I'm such an idiot," He snorted lightly. "Just a few days ago, I was telling myself that I'd never give up…"

Despite his mood, Naruto could feel a small smile gracing his face, and he walked to the apartment that Tsunade had rented for him. Once he closed the door and secured it; he walked into the bedroom and turned around to close the door. Naruto blinked as he saw Hikari staring at him; one step away from him.

"You're an idiot," Hikari growled as she pushed him towards the wall. Naruto only had one second in which to register confusion, before she slammed her lips against his. She began to violently attack his mouth with her tongue; putting it in just the right places to elicit positive responses from Naruto. Naruto growled as her tongue lightly flicked against his cheek, and he pushed her on the bed.

"If you don't turn back now, you'll mate with me," Naruto growled. Hikari allowed herself a confident smirk when she saw his flushed cheeks and the tails which were flickering behind him.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," She grinned.

_---The God's Poker Table---_

"He passed the first test. Willingness to break the rules for her," Amaterasu commented.

"You think he'll get the second?" Tsukuyomi asked.

"We'll have to wait and see…" Amaterasu muttered.

_---The Next Day---_

_**(I'll write a lemon… eventually. The setup for this one wouldn't work with the lemon I have planned)**_

Naruto squinted as the light from the curtains streamed into his room. He lightly stroked Hikari's cheek, and smiled as she tightened her grip around him. "Wasn't I supposed to go meet my team today?" Naruto asked himself.

"Don't leave," Hikari mumbled.

"Well, that's all the motivation I need," Naruto shrugged as he formed a Kage Bunshin without the seals. The Bunshin went towards the training ground to train his students.

Hikari turned around to face Naruto and glared at him. "If I'm pregnant, you have to take responsibility."

Naruto smiled, "You know, I've always wanted a kid. I'll go through heaven and hell for you, Hi-hime. If we have a kid, I'll do the same for him or her. Although I'm quite sure that kissing doesn't equate to pregnancy..."

Hikari giggled, "We'll see."

Naruto chuckled lightly. "When I get back... maybe then I'll be able to take you..."

Hikari snorted. "Do you think we'll have the time?"

Naruto winked. "We'll find time." He looked at the calendar and frowned. "I'm going to have to go."

"Why?" Hikari asked.

"I'm going to take care of something," Naruto replied as he rolled out of bed. Hikari grabbed his hand, and Naruto turned to face her.

"You better come back alive," She murmured.

Naruto winked. "I will."

He jumped towards the Hokage tower, and inside the window. "What is it?" Tsunade asked.

"I need to leave the village," Naruto replied. "I'm going after Akatsuki."

"Wouldn't that be playing into their trap?" Tsunade pointed out.

"I'll have my best chance to fight them tomorrow," Naruto replied. "Mark it down as an SS-Ranked mission. Actually, don't mark it down. Just give me a temporary travelling pass."

"You better come back alive, gaki," Tsunade sighed as she handed him the pass. Naruto winked as he took a necklace with a green gem attached and handed it to Tsunade. "Is that…?"

"I can't wear it during this fight," Naruto gravely stated. "I know what it's used for, and I can't risk it suppressing my yoki."

Tsunade's gaze hardened. "Don't you dare die…" She murmured.

Naruto winked as he unfurled a scroll and placed some blood on a seal in the middle of it. As soon as he placed the blood on it, a perfect copy of him was assembled; from the innards up. "My Chi Bunshin (Blood Clone) will act in my place here. It has about 1/5th of my power."

Tsunade blinked as she did the math. "That's a lot…"

"Yeah," Naruto grinned. He turned to the Bunshin and whispered something in its ear; causing the Bunshin to pout and blush consecutively. "Alright, see you Tsunade-sama."

Tsunade's eyes widened as Naruto jumped out of the window. "He'll be fine," The clone reassured her.

There was a moment's pause. "So, seen any good movies lately?" Tsunade asked the clone in frustration.

_---2 Days Later---_

Naruto narrowed his eyes as he entered Amegakure no Sato. He could still see the blood stains from the recent civil war which had occurred. Naruto didn't need a genius to know the winner of the match, but he knew that this would be the hardest fight that he'd ever had.

Just as Naruto stepped past the first building, he was intercepted by six figures, each of them with similar eyes. Their eyes were completely purple, with concentric circles leading towards the pupil. "Pein, I challenge you to a battle," Naruto stated after the seven of them stared at each other.

"What would this battle be, Namikaze Naruto?" Pein asked. "What could force you to fight against a god?"

Naruto allowed a small smile to grace his otherwise emotionally devoid face. "Peace."

To Be Continued.

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**Next Chapter: Naruto vs. Pein: I Won't Give Up!**

**Mmk, I'm going to my school dance now (well, later) :D**

**- Laterz  
**


	22. Legend of Uzumaki Naruto: Naruto vs Pein

**Hey. Whaddup? Did you see the latest House ep? It won, right?**

**Exactly.**

**Anyways, here we have about 2k words of Naruto vs. Pein. 1k of useless stuff that I wanted to cut, and about... -1k of a lemon. Yeah, I almost wrote a lemon. Then I realized that it would be too cliche to have Hikari drag him into her room and "punish" him. As hawt as that would be... *backpedals* not BDSM. That's just scary. I'm talking about anticipation. It's the _anticipation_ that makes or breaks it... or so I think.  
**

**At the end, after my closing A/N, you will see previews of the two (or was it three? No, it's two) stories I'm working on. One is Naruto x FemKyuu and the other is Naruto x OC. They won't be out until I've finished a satisfactory number of chapters, or this story. So they're just here to make you squirm.**

_**BTW: Let me make this clear. I'm showing you guys my two beginnings to let you see what I plan to release when I have more time. If I ever get wind that somebody stole this, I won't do anything like this again. But, since I know that there's probably that one idiot there who won't listen, let me reiterate.**_

_**I... will... not... post... OnS... or... any... other... story... for... six... months. That's right, I'll punish all for the crimes of one.**_

_**But hey, you guys are awesome enough not to steal from me, right? :)**_

_**(If you tell me about somebody who obviously steals my work, I'll let you read it regardless of the limitations placed by me)  
**_

_**P.S.: I'll also castrate you with a rusty spoon. Or shove a kunai up your rectum if you're a girl. I don't care either way, my work represents my sweat and blood. I could easily be studying rather than writing for people.**_

**Alright then, on that happy note, Enjoy the show!**

**Oh, btw, I'm somewhat dissatisfied with the Naruto vs. Pein battle, I feel it's a rush job. If you think you can do better (well, you prob. can) then send me a re-written version. Pl0x + Tyvm.  
**

_

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_

**_Primary Title: "The Legend of Uzumaki Naruto: Naruto vs. Pein_**

**_Secondary Title: "Naruto vs. Pein: I Won't Give Up!"  
_**

_---Last Time---_

_Naruto narrowed his eyes as he entered Amegakure no Sato. He could still see the blood stains from the recent civil war which had occurred. Naruto didn't need a genius to know the winner of the match, but he knew that this would be the hardest fight that he'd ever had._

_Just as Naruto stepped past the first building, he was intercepted by six figures, each of them with similar eyes. Their eyes were completely purple, with concentric circles leading towards the pupil. "Pein, I challenge you to a battle," Naruto stated after the seven of them stared at each other._

"_What would this battle be, Namikaze Naruto?" Pein asked. "What could force you to fight against a god?"_

_Naruto allowed a small smile to grace his otherwise emotionally devoid face. "Peace."_

_---And Now---_

Pein nodded thoughtfully. "If you win?"

"We'll discuss the terms then," Naruto replied. "If I lose, I will give you the Kyuubi."

_**"You're playing a dangerous game…"**_

_"Kitsune are tricksters." _"This will be a fight between you and I. Nobody else can interfere, alright?" Naruto clarified.

"Very well. Would you prefer to fight within this village, or elsewhere?" Pein asked.

"Elsewhere," Naruto replied. Pein nodded seriously, and lead Naruto towards an empty area in which they could fight. After 10 minutes of ninja travel, they'd finally reached their destination, and 5 more bodies of Pein jumped out to stand beside the blonde Pein Naruto had seen. "So, this is the power of the Rinnegan?"

"Indeed it is," Pein replied courteously. "I hope you are ready to bow to god."

Naruto chuckled lightly. "I don't bow to anybody." With that, the two of them jumped into action.

The Pein with orange hair tied into a ponytail cut his hand and pressed it to the ground; causing multiple rhinoceroses to appear. They were all nearly the same size, with concentric eyes (which Naruto recognized to be the Rinnegan). Naruto quickly assumed that version of Pein to be the "Animal Path", which could supposedly summon any animal. _"Technically, I can get those contracts cancelled, but there's too much paperwork involved…"_

The multitude of animals began to march towards him, and Naruto flicked a kunai towards the only rhino which was looking away. When Naruto noticed it dodge the kunai, he frowned thoughtfully. _"Assuming that Pein has more than one body, and only one real mind; that would have to mean they're being controlled somehow… Is this a power of the Rinnegan? Then why would that summon dodge an attack it can't even see? Unless… it's shared vision?"_

Naruto quickly devised a basic strategy and imbued one of his kunai with a seal which would affect the entire area. Naruto tossed his kunai towards the summons and jumped back; watching as they suddenly collapsed with their eyes remaining open. _"If he can see what they're seeing, he'll get a migraine if too many versions of the Rinnegan are on the battlefield. The only problem is his limit… Ah screw this strategy." _Naruto took out an exploding tag and attached it to a kunai; using it to obliterate the summoned animals. Animal Path quickly jumped out of the way.

Pein was cautiously watching Naruto. Pein knew that Naruto was no pushover, and it was likely that this could be a fight to the death. Naruto sighed and flew through hand seals at a speed which Pein felt that even he would be hard-pressed to match.

"I've recently perfected two techniques my father made. Truthfully, the Hiraishin was incomplete, as was the Rasengan," Naruto grinned. "I've fixed the flaws behind the two of them." Just as Naruto finished what he was saying, he disappeared in a burst of white light and shoved a kunai through the head of Animal Path. "The problem with the former Hiraishin was that it relied upon the tri-pronged kunai. The problem with the Rasengan was that it required immense concentration, and your target had to be in point-blank range."

Naruto formed another Rasengan, and grinned. He brought his arm back and threw the Rasengan towards the blonde-haired Pein, Deva Path. **"Shinra Tensei!"**

"Even gods have their demons," Naruto muttered. Pein's eyes widened as the Rasengan disappeared rather than bouncing back. Two seconds after the affects of Pein's Shinra Tensei ended, the Rasengan reappeared right in front of his face, and it was only finely-honed reflexes which saved him. Pein gritted his teeth as the Rasengan flew behind him and exploded onto the ground.

Naruto sighed lightly and formed a few hand seals. **"Kitsune-bi: Bakuhatsu! (Fox-fire: Explosion)" **Naruto pushed yoki into his hand and his entire arm went alight with purple flames. Naruto gritted his teeth and pointed the purple fire at Pein's Deva Path. With a quick gesture; the fire left Naruto's hand and travelled towards Deva Path at an extremely high speed. Just as it was about to hit Deva Path, another Pein took the brunt of the attack, and Naruto frowned.

_"It can absorb ninjutsu, huh? It'll probably die on its own in three minutes, but that's too slow. I'll have to get rid of it…" _Naruto frowned slightly and moved towards the Pein which had absorbed his attack. Naruto imbued his hand with as much yoki as he could, and punched it in the heart; close to where he assumed one of the tenketsu to be.

As luck would have it, Naruto hit Preta Path's tenketsu and made its tenketsu explode; incapacitating it. Sadly, at that exact moment, Deva Path used Shinra Tensei to push Naruto into a trap set by the other bodies of Pein. Naruto groaned as he was caught in an immense explosion which probably would've killed him if he wasn't a _really good _healer. _"Shinra Tensei lasts for 5 seconds… It's logical to assume that it requires the same amount of cool down time…"_

Naruto frowned thoughtfully as he saw the rest of Pein's bodies moving together and beginning their own attacks. Over the course of the next few seconds, he was bombarded with multiple injuries from lightning, water and earth attacks. The worst part, in Naruto's opinion, was that the Earth attacks were saturated with water which contained lightning in it. Naruto groaned as he tried to will the stench of burning flesh away. "So you were playing with me," Naruto muttered as Deva Path walked towards him.

Deva Path inclined his head slightly. "As were you."

Naruto smirked. "True, but you realized when to stop." With that, Naruto jumped up again and rolled his neck around; cracking all of his bones. Naruto frowned thoughtfully, and decided on a good course of action. Within fifteen seconds, four tails comprised entirely of yoki grew out of his back. "Alright, let's take this up a notch!"

Naruto rushed towards Deva Path at full speed, and that particular body of Pein was finding it hard to defend himself as Naruto attacked him with various punches and kicks imbued with either lightning or fire. Finally, Deva Path jumped back and performed a Shinra Tensei while preparing a lethal attack. Naruto grinned widely, and replaced himself with another of Pein's paths, just as Deva Path threw a lethal attack at Naruto. Pein gritted his teeth as he watched his Human Path die.

_"3 Down, 3 to go…"_

Naruto frowned as he saw one of the paths of Pein release tentacles from its mouth. Before the tentacles could reach any of the other paths of Pein, Naruto quickly cut off the tentacles and sent a quick fire jutsu towards the bodies. Pein's Deva Path gritted his teeth in frustration.

Naruto sighed as he looked up into the sky. "Let's say I get rid of all three of you. Do I win?"

"You must have all my bodies at your mercy," Pein slowly replied. Naruto nodded thoughtfully as he burst into action. Pein raised an eyebrow as Naruto tossed a kunai with a blank tag attached to it. Pein simply moved to the side of the kunai, and attempted to move, only to find to his horror, that he couldn't.

"You have one more body left, don't you?" Naruto mused. "I remember Ero-sennin telling me about a kid he trained who had the Rinnegan. He even showed me a particular picture of that kid, but none of you look like him… It's almost as if, none of you are the _real_ Pein… or should I say, Nagato."

"I am not Nagato, I am god," The 3 remaining paths of Pein droned on.

"You're not too convincing, you know," Naruto snorted. "You're just like Kakashi-sensei. Both of you are doing something you don't really want to do; something you don't believe in." Naruto narrowed his eyes. "Since Kakashi-sensei became who he was due to the death of his comrades, what about you?" Naruto frowned thoughtfully. "What happened to that other kid Jiraiya was talking about, Yahiko?"

Pein growled, "Yahiko is gone."

Naruto nodded. "I see… So you're doing this to honour him in some twisted way? You don't think he'd rather that you live for yourself?"

A few kilometres away, Nagato's eyes widened in shock.

"Although, if you still wish to stay as the Leader of Akatsuki; the organization which wishes to obtain all of the 9 bijū…" Naruto narrowed his eyes. "You'll have to deal with me."

Five more tails of red yoki erupted from Naruto's tailbone, and he winced slightly. He opened his eyes, which had red irises with black slit-shaped pupils. He had grown fangs from the transformation, and they were hanging over his bottom lip. His fingernails had turned into claws, and he'd grown a pair of fox-ears on the top of his head.

Pein's eyes widened in shock, and before he could even react; Naruto had formed two clones; each of them with two Rasengan in their hands. The two clones used the new-and-improved Hiraishin to reach to the side of the two paths of Pein which were not Deva Path. Naruto watched impassively as the heads of the paths were sandwiched in-between the two Rasengan; killing them instantly.

Naruto stared at Pein. "Do you still wish to continue this fight?" Pein nodded silently. Naruto sighed. "So be it."

Naruto ran towards Pein as fast as he could move, and the two of them began to exchange blows. Pein quickly used his Shinra Tensei to send Naruto flying; only to be shocked when Naruto emerged from the smoke created by the Kage Bunshin; with an orb of black fire within his hand. His palms were burning from the sheer intensity of the flame.

_"I have 5 seconds to do this…"_

Naruto landed right before Pein, and thrust his palm towards Pein; who moved out of the way.

_4…_

Naruto ducked beneath a punch which Pein sent him, and attempted to sweep Pein's legs. Pein jumped above Naruto's leg.

_3…_

Naruto gritted his teeth as he jumped up; only to be met by Pein's elbow to his head. Naruto's vision swam and he thrust his hand towards Pein's general location.

_2…_

Naruto quickly blinked and regained his vision. He sent a roundhouse kick towards Pein's head.

_1…_

Pein blocked the roundhouse kick, and Naruto quickly shifted his weight to spin around and send a hook kick towards Pein. Naruto grinned as Pein ducked…

_0…_

Only to meet Naruto's hand. **"Katon: Amaterasu Rasengan!" **Naruto yelled as Pein's head was consumed by the fire of Naruto's Rasengan.

Naruto panted slightly as his tails and fox-ears receded, although he retained the rest of his demonic features. Naruto looked at the deceased body of Pein's Deva Path, and sighed silently.

"A chain of never-ending hatred," Naruto muttered. "That's what we would have been stuck in. I'm glad I intercepted the information about Akatsuki from Jiraiya-sensei's spy network… As it is, he would have had trouble, and I doubt Nagato was really trying…"

_**"The Rinnegan is far more powerful than you have seen… Perhaps he wanted you to win."**_

Naruto smiled slightly as he extended his senses to find Nagato. When he finally located Nagato's location; he hoisted Pein's Deva Path over his shoulder and jumped towards Nagato's location.

When he'd finally reached Nagato's 'hide-out', Naruto dropped the body of Deva Path in front of Nagato. "I believe I have you at my mercy, Nagato."

Nagato chuckled slightly. "Namikaze Naruto… what is peace to you?"

Naruto frowned slightly. "To me? Peace doesn't exist. It's a dream which will shatter easily after a short amount of time."

"So you understand why I wished to amass the bijū," Nagato rasped.

Naruto nodded. "I understand, however… Peace made through fear is shallow. All that hate would be hidden beneath the surface, and it would only take one small incident for it to be brought forth. It's like a curse," Naruto faltered. "But I'll break that curse! I'll find peace, and I won't give up until it exists! Even if I have to act like a true ninja…" Naruto's expression became far more sombre, and he shot Nagato a glare. "If you get in the way of true peace… I'll find you, and I'll kill you! I know you're a good man beneath what Madara has turned you into…" Naruto chuckled.

Naruto walked up to Nagato and force-fed him a pill. Nagato was knocked unconscious, and Naruto placed a scroll beside his makeshift throne. "I expect you to honour your side of the agreement, Nagato."

Naruto slowly walked out of the cave and smirked slightly. He took an orange book out of his pocket and began to read it; discarding the fake cover. The book read "The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi".

"You'll see, Ero-sennin," Naruto muttered. "I'll bring true peace to the world.

Naruto travelled at high speeds up until he reached the border of Hi no Kuni, when he finally stopped. _"Should I have won or lost?"_

_**"If you win, then you're not going to have that escape route."**_

_"If I lose, I should be dead."_

_**"You'd have escaped. Head to Izumi and recuperate for one day, then travel to Hi. You'll get a grave injury and be knocked unconscious for a while."**_

Naruto frowned thoughtfully. It worked, but it was damn risky. With a sigh, Naruto extended his senses to find the Hiraishin kunai he'd given to Koyuki. After a moment of searching, he finally found it. Naruto focussed on the location of the kunai, and within fifteen seconds, he was inside of the daimyo's castle.

Naruto blinked as he came face to face with Koyuki who'd just finished changing. Or so he assumed, judging by the discarded clothes on the bed.

"I don't think we should be meeting like this," Koyuki dryly commented.

Naruto shrugged. "I just finished a mission and I need somewhere to recuperate. Since you're the only person who actually has one of my special kunai, and the hotels are too risky, I came here to ask for a room."

"One day?" Koyuki asked.

"One night," Naruto clarified.

Koyuki nodded. "You can use the same one you had last time."

"Alright," Naruto shrugged. "So, what's new?"

"Well, we've disbanded Yukigakure no Sato," Koyuki replied. "After the fifth assassination attempt on me, it became somewhat clear that they didn't think of me as the real daimyo."

"That's a shame," Naruto mused. "As it stands, Izumi no Kuni needs a hidden village. Grave times are coming."

"Only ½ of the ninja are loyal towards me, and none of them are strong enough to meet the standards of what the Five Great Shinobi Villages would consider a Kage."

_---Two Days Later---_

Naruto gritted his teeth as he forced wounds to form while he jumped on trees. He comically stopped midair, before he realized the three mistakes he'd made: he'd given himself a concussion, injured his legs, and attempted to jump over the daimyo's estate.

The last words he'd heard before he blacked out were, "He's injured! We have to help him!"

_---One Week Later---_

Naruto groaned as he opened his eyes. He was somewhat surprised to see Tsunade glaring at him. Naruto looked to the side to see the emblem of fire country proudly adorning the door, and he immediately guessed that he was going to be killed by Tsunade, and probably have his remains executed by the daimyo.

Who incidentally, was standing in the room, in front of Tsunade. Naruto blinked. "You're quite lucky that my daughter's taken a liking to you, young man," The daimyo stated in a humour-filled tone.

Naruto was surprised to see that the daimyo wasn't as old as Naruto had thought. The man had smooth brown hair and a goatee, and his brown eyes seemed to be filled with eternal mischief.

"Your daughter… has taken a liking to me," Naruto deadpanned. "Please tell me she's a kid."

Tsunade snickered. The daimyo snickered. "Yes, she's just a 9-year old. When her guard was about to execute you after you'd passed out, her exact words were 'You can't hurt nii-chan'."

Naruto sighed in relief. "Well, at least my head's still on my body. It was awkward living without a head that one time."

"You've lived without a head?" Tsunade asked.

"Once," Naruto trailed off. "I was hungry for the entire day until it grew back."

"Your head grew back?" The daimyo raised an eyebrow.

"I'm special," Naruto shrugged. "Which reminds me… Where's my cloak?" The daimyo pointed towards the corner, and Naruto nodded. "Thanks for your hospitality, daimyo-sama," Naruto bowed at the waist, and the daimyo raised an eyebrow.

"I apologize for my subordinate, daimyo-sama," Tsunade bowed deeply to him. "He won't intrude on your estate unwelcomed again."

"Ah, it's fine," The daimyo shook his head. "I'm sure my daughter would like to see him again sometime."

"I'll see what I can do, daimyo-sama," Naruto smiled. "Excuse me for imposing."

Once Naruto and Tsunade were away from the mansion, Tsunade turned towards Naruto. "What happened in your fight?" Naruto bowed his head, and Tsunade took that as an answer. "Don't worry about it gaki. We'll figure something out."

"Of course," Naruto grinned. "I'll beat Akatsuki!" _"Or rather, Uchiha Madara… that bastard's gotta get what's coming to him."_

_**"Here, here…"**_

Tsunade smiled. "Now then, for your punishment…"

_---5 Hours After Arriving At Konoha---_

Naruto groaned as he stared at the paperwork on the desk. "I'm never becoming Hokage," Naruto muttered under his breath. "So much fucking paperwork…"

He stamped another sheet of paper and placed it in the 'completed' pile. Naruto raised an eyebrow at the next piece of paper, entitled 'Petition to exile Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto'.

"They still do that?" He rolled his eyes. "Wow, that's just sad…"

Naruto looked around inconspicuously and made a shadow clone to do the paperwork… while he got the hell out of there as quickly as he could. Naruto gulped as he walked into Hikari's apartment… and ducked underneath a kunai. Naruto lightly sniffed the air, and felt a scent which invoked fear in him. He smelled something tangy, which equated to… arousal. His brain automatically focussed on that emotion, ignoring the presence of 'depression', 'hope', and 'murderous intent'.

"H-hey, Hi-hime…" Naruto nervously waved towards her.

"So, I heard that you had a lot of _fatal injuries_," She glared at him. Naruto simply whimpered in response.

_**"Whipped."**_

"I-I can explain," Naruto stuttered. "I made those injuries myself so that I wouldn't seem suspicious coming back here without any wounds."

Hikari narrowed her eyes. "Do you swear that you're telling the truth?"

"Y-yes," Naruto hesitantly replied.

"Alright," Hikari chirped, and the ominous atmosphere disappeared. Naruto let out a sigh of relief. "So, tell me about what happened…"

"Oh, nothing much. I fought somebody with a god-complex, beat him, told Obaa-chan that I lost the fight so that she wouldn't expect too much of me," Naruto shrugged.

"I want to hear _all_ about it," Hikari demanded as she pulled him inside the house to chat.

On top of a nearby rooftop, a masked ANBU narrowed his/her eyes. "Danzou-sama will want to hear about this," he/she muttered.

To Be Continued.

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**So, Danzou's still in the game, huh? It makes sense if you think about it logically. If he's in prison, he's the last suspect for something that happens.**

**Right, Naruto won the fight versus Pein from sheer dumb luck. Pein did not expect him to use seals in the fight, nor did he know that Naruto could combine Amaterasu with Rasengan (it would've burnt his hand if he were still human).**

**Now, we have to wonder... what pill did Naruto force-feed Pein? (nourishment pill). What plans does Naruto have for Amegakure and Akatsuki?**

**Yup... Alright, Preview No.1**

**

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_Changing Loyalties - Chapter 1: Breaking the Surface_**

_What possessed me to change directions mid-attack? I may never know…_

_What I do know… It's quite possibly the best decision of my life…_

_-Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto_

_Former Hokage Aspirate of Konohagakure no Sato_

"Ne," A girl tugged at his sleeve. "Do you want to play?"

Naruto stopped mid-swing and turned to the girl, ecstatic that somebody wanted to play with him. He'd just turned six earlier that month, and at best he'd gotten some ramen vouchers. At worst… well, he'd rather not remember that.

The girl was quite pretty, and she had various baubles; likely indicating her social status. Her hair was a dark black; possibly onyx, while her eyes were the most entrancing shade of brown he'd seen. Of course, he'd only ever seen Jiji's brown eyes.

She was wearing a light blue yukata which had the image of golden fire painstakingly (or so he assumed) embroidered along the middle of it. It was tied with a pale silver obi, and covering her feet was a pair of zori with pink straps. Her silky hair was left untied, and it fell over her shoulders. He reckoned that it would probably reach the middle of her back at the most.

"Sure," Naruto grinned widely. "What's your name? I'm Uzumaki Naruto, the future Hokage!"

She smiled back, albeit not as enthusiastically. "I'm Hi no Kaori," She replied with a polite little bow. "It's nice to meet you, Uzumaki-san."

**...And, Cut!**

**

* * *

_A Fine Line - Chapter 1 : Death and Rebirth._**

**_"If absolute power corrupts absolutely, where does that leave god?"_**

_Listen to a story, and listen well. This is the fable of one Uzumaki Naruto, the Jinchūriki of the Kyuubi. The boy was not a hero, not a monster, not a demon. He was but a simple boy who wished for one thing: companionship. He died not of natural causes, nor of betrayal, but for a cause he believed in. It was a pity that the gods weren't done with him._

_Naruto walked through the sewer; towards the light, until he could bear it no longer. When Naruto thought he would collapse from the pressure placed on his legs, he stepped through a giant door, and into a prison._

_ The prison was a pitiful room, yet one of the largest in the pseudo-sewer. It stood over 500ft tall, and at the very end of the room; there was a large cage. This cage was fortified by a simple piece of paper which had the word 'Seal' written on it. Naruto squinted through the brightness, and was shocked to see an immensely tall nine-tailed fox._

_ **"Well, my jailer has finally seen fit to pay me a visit, has he?" **The fox asked with obvious scorn in its voice._

_ "Shut up, you stupid fox!" Naruto yelled. "I've come here for your power!"_

_ **"My power?" **The fox chuckled. **"What would a pitiful human do with the power of the Almighty Kyuubi no Kitsune?"**_

_"I told you to shut up!" Naruto yelled again. "You've been living in my head…stomach for far too long! It's about time you pay me some rent!"_

_ **"Pay you some rent? You expect me, the Kyuubi no Kitsune, to give a weak, scrawny human like you my power?" **The Kitsune chuckled darkly. It trained its eyes completely onto Naruto, and he was struck for a moment with how alike their eyes were. Both held sorrow beyond their years. Both held immense hatred beneath the surface. Yet, one point where the Kyuubi no Kitsune differed: it took its hatred, its fear, its weakness… and turned it into strength. While Naruto simply sat around and waited for somebody to acknowledge him. While he loudly proclaimed he'd be Hokage without actually doing anything about it. Save for the occasional prank, he truly would be nothing if not for the fox. If he hadn't had the hatred to motivate him, he would've simply stayed a civilian his life. If he hadn't had the fox to save him, he would've crumbled to dust; losing his resolve. Though he'd be damned if he told the fox that._

_ **"I have one thing to say to you, Uzumaki Naruto," **The giant Kitsune calmly stated. Then, its eyes became cold, and Naruto could feel fear burrow into the pit of his stomach. **"You are an idiot."**_

_Naruto's eyes widened and he sputtered indignantly. "H-hey! You can't just go march in here and call me an idiot!"_

_ The Kitsune let out a booming laugh – which sounded more malicious than anything Naruto had ever heard – and when the laughter finally died down, the Kitsune spoke; the amused tone never leaving its voice. **"This is your mind, fool. You marched in here. You hold me prisoner. Once again, you are an idiot."**_

_Naruto ground his teeth slowly, meticulously; trying to calm the rage he was experiencing. He would not lower himself to the level of that fox! "Listen here you damned furball!" Naruto yelled. "If you don't give me your power, I'll go in there and take it myself!"_

_ **"Then take it, boy," **The Kitsune gave a malicious grin; exposing all of its teeth. **"Take it… if you dare."**_

_Naruto gulped loudly. "I-I'll m-march right in there… and k-kick your ass!"_

_ The fox didn't seem disturbed by that. If anything, its grin became even wider. It watched as Naruto tripped over his own feet to get to the cage. It tried not to laugh when Naruto walked right up to the cage and stared defiantly (or fearfully, the fox could never get the two right) at the Kyuubi._

_ "Y-you heard me!" Naruto yelled with false bravado. "I'll kick your ass!"_

_ The fox suddenly narrowed its eyes. **"Leave,"** It commanded. Naruto sputtered indignantly, but was given no chance to make any reply as he was pushed out by the fox, and forced to fight the famous – or infamous – Orochimaru on his own. **"You dare enter my domain after the stunt you pulled?" **The fox roared as a figure emerged from the sewer._

**...And, cut!

* * *

**

**Alright, let me make this clear. I showed you guys my two beginnings to let you see what I plan to release when I have more time. If I ever get wind that somebody stole this, I won't do anything like this again. But, since I know that there's probably that one idiot there who won't listen, let me reiterate.**

**I... will... not... post... OnS... or... any... other... story... for... six... months. That's right, I'll punish all for the crimes of one.**

_**(If you tell me about somebody who obviously steals my work, I'll let you read it regardless of the limitations placed by me)**_

**But hey, you guys are awesome enough not to steal from me, right? :)  
**


	23. The Second Chunin Exams

_**Change: Ch.21; they only kissed in bed. No sex.**_

**So yeah. This chapter has a lemon in it. It's around 1k long or something. Then, we go to the Chunin exams in Kiri. Hoorayyyy...**

**Anyways, I finished this yesterday, but I sent it over to get checked by Darkfire, and he sent it to knight-bishop (to check teh lemon). I'm somewhat confident in it, despite the fact that it's only my second lemon (the first one shouldn't count b/c it's only 100 words long or something retarded like that). Oh, and I also got some tips from "Kyuubi16 The Celestial" (that was his/her name, right?). He/She's an awesome lemon writer in my opinion.  
**

**On a sadder note, now the tweens can't read this story because I had to bump it up to M... Awww :(. Yeah, I felt (for a second) as if I was dirtying this story by writing a lemon. Then, I sighed. Then, I tried again. Repeat 4x.**

**Enjoyz!  
**

_

* * *

---Last Time---_

"_Alright," Hikari chirped, and the ominous atmosphere disappeared. Naruto let out a sigh of relief. "So, tell me about what happened…"_

"_Oh, nothing much. I fought somebody with a god-complex, beat him, told Obaa-chan that I lost the fight so that she wouldn't expect too much of me," Naruto shrugged._

"_I want to hear __all__ about it," Hikari demanded as she pulled him inside the house to chat._

_On top of a nearby rooftop, a masked ANBU narrowed his/her eyes. "Danzou-sama will want to hear about this," he/she muttered._

_---And Now---_

"I need to make my genin team high-Chûnin level in three months," Naruto mused once he'd finished his tale. "Madara will go after me quite soon."

"Uchiha Madara…?" Hikari narrowed her eyes.

"The one and only," Naruto muttered. "Soon, word of my lineage will get out. Iwa will try to use my genin team against me, use you against me…"

"So you need to teach them to protect themselves in this day and age," Hikari concluded.

"I do," Naruto replied.

"Then go," Hikari lightly shoved him towards the door with a smile. "I can wait, but they can't."

Naruto smiled slightly. "Alright then, Hi-hime. See you later."

He walked out the door and prepared himself to train his genin in everything from chakra control to ninjutsu.

_---1 Month Later---_

"Burn here, target sighted."

"2Kewl4Skewl here, confirmed."

"Nutty here, awaiting orders."

"Fox here, capture target," Naruto yawned through his headset.

Naruto grinned as he watched the team jump towards the cat at the same time, only to collide with each other. After a harrowing chase through forbidden training fields, minefields, and forests, the team was about to give up. Only for Naruto to jump down, pick up the cat, and stroke it. The cat purred.

Saimei's eyebrow twitched.

Ukito's hands itched to make hand-seals.

Isae's hand suddenly went to her kunai case.

_---2 Months Later---_

Naruto stared at the forms in his hand with something akin to horror. His genin students would probably slaughter the other competitors. It was at this point he wished that he'd never taught Isae how to use the chakra scalpel, or Saimei to use the Futon Daitoppa.

With a sigh, he handed it to his three genin. "Alright kids, I've entered you in the Chûnin exams. We'll be leaving for Kirigakure no Sato tomorrow and I expect you all to be at the east gate tomorrow."

"We'll see you there, sensei," Saimei spoke for them. He'd mellowed out a little, but he was still eerily insane (read: way too happy).

"Finally, a challenge," Ukito muttered. He hadn't really changed at all, save for the rivalry he now had with Saimei. It was getting to the point where Naruto had to pry them away from each other. He briefly mused whether or not they were gay.

"Don't get hurt too much, idiots," Isae mumbled underneath her breath. She'd learned some medical jutsu from Hikari and Naruto, and she'd taken to it like a fish would with water.

Naruto rubbed his head sheepishly. "Alright, make sure to pack for three months since we don't know how long it'll take. Don't worry about weight, since I'll bring some sealing scrolls with me."

"Hai, sensei," The team said simultaneously. Naruto smirked lightly, and he looked at the sun with a small frown.

_"Hmm, Hikari said she had a surprise for me…" _Naruto mused. _"She smelled awfully excited when she said that…" _"Alright, I'm going to head back now. I think you three should rest for tonight, since it'd be stupid to go into the Chûnin exams in anything less than top condition."

The three genin nodded again, and Naruto jumped off towards Hikari's apartment.

"I wonder where Sensei's been going lately," Saimei mused.

"Maybe we should follow him?" Isae suggested.

"Idiots," Ukito half-heartedly mumbled.

Saimei simply snorted and jumped off to follow his sensei, who was too immersed within his own thoughts to notice. A few seconds later, Isae followed, along with Ukito.

Naruto opened the door to Hikari's apartment. "Hi-hime?" He asked loudly; his voice reverberating through the room.

"In here!" Hikari yelled from her bedroom.

_---__**Lemon Warning**__---_

Naruto shrugged as he locked her door and walked in, only to see her clad in nothing but lingerie.

Naruto's breath hitched in his throat as he stared at Hikari's shapely figure. Hikari smiled sultrily, "Ne, Naruto-kun… How about joining me?" She said with a wink.

Naruto blinked. "Huh?" He intelligently responded. After a few more seconds; her words finally seeped into his brain, and Naruto hesitantly walked towards Hikari. He could feel his pants tightening, and he knew that today was the day they'd both lose their virginity.

When Naruto was a step away from Hikari, she grabbed onto him, and pulled him towards her. Naruto fell onto the bed, and she quickly flipped him underneath her. Hikari stared down at him, and licked her lips hungrily. "What's wrong, Naruto-kun? Don't you want this?"

"Of course I do," Naruto instantly responded without thinking.

"Then what's stopping you?" She asked as she brought his hand up to her breast which was barely contained within the small bra. Naruto hesitantly kneaded it, and she moaned. Hikari brought her head down to whisper into Naruto's ears. "Ne, Naruto-kun… don't keep me waiting  
again…" She moaned again as Naruto awkwardly flicked his hand against the pink nipple which was barely hidden by her red bra. "I want you," She whispered.

Naruto's eyes gained a fire, and he removed his hand, making her whine. Naruto flipped her onto her back, and brought himself above her; supporting himself on his hands and knees. He began to lightly trail kisses along her collarbone, and she whimpered with pleasure as he lightly bit her earlobe. Naruto leaned forward and kissed her on her cool lips, while he encircled his arms behind her and awkwardly fumbled with her bra strap. After a few seconds, he finally managed to remove it, and he carelessly tossed it to the side. "I want you too, Hi-hime," Naruto murmured as he began to play  
with her soft breasts.

Naruto brought his lips towards her left breast and began to trail kisses around it; ignoring her tantalizing nipple. Hikari moaned as he flicked his tongue across her nipple; which began to harden as a result of the cold air. His right hand gave her other breast a squeeze.

Naruto began to move downwards, and trailed kisses along her cleavage, and down to her navel. He went even lower, down to her lower lips, and gave her panties an experimental lick.

He thought as he grimaced at the taste, _"Cotton tastes horrible."_

Naruto impatiently tugged her panties off, brought his mouth towards Hikari's nether regions, and began to lick around the outside of them; causing her juices to start flowing.

Hikari moaned loudly as pleasure coursed through her body, and her back began to arch. "Naruto-kun," She moaned. "Stop teasing me…"

Naruto chuckled; the warm air sent a shiver up Hikari's spine. "If you insist, Hi-hime."

Without further ado, Naruto's tongue flicked forward through her lips, and she gripped the bed sheets tightly her nails digging in. Naruto deeply inhaled the tangy scent of Hikari, which smelled just like  
her...Obviously.

Naruto awkwardly moved his tongue around in circles within her, trying to find the right spot. When Hikari moaned loudly, he wished he'd been paying attention. "More," She moaned.

Naruto stared at the small nub which had poked out during his exploration, and he lightly flicked it with his tongue. Hikari's back arched even more, and she let out a loud cry of ecstasy. Naruto grinned deviously, and he dove back into her; relishing her taste.

In a few short minutes, Hikari could feel her control starting to leave, and she moaned, "N-Naruto-k-kun… I'm c-cumming…"

Naruto hummed lightly, and his rough tongue began to reverberate within her folds; sending her over the edge. Just as she started cumming, Naruto rapidly licked her clitoris; sending her to a second orgasm just as the first ended sending waves of pleasure coursing through her body.

Hikari collapsed onto the bed, drenched in sweat. "That was amazing," She murmured.

Naruto licked the juices off of his lips, "I'm glad," he murmured. Hikari kissed him on the lips; enjoying her faint taste.

"Now it's my turn," Hikari sultrily grinned as she crawled down towards Naruto's midsection while leaving her ass hanging over him.

Hikari unzipped Naruto's pants and pulled them down and stared at the tent being formed within his boxers. She unconsciously licked her lips as she impatiently ripped his boxers away from his penis. Naruto's hardness lightly hit her on the nose, and she hesitantly brought her tongue forward to lick it. His penis twitched slightly, and she took that opportunity to envelop the tip within her mouth.

Naruto groaned as he felt her tongue slowly encircle the base while her mouth created suction on the tip. _"Not good, I'll cum soon,"_ He thought as his manhood twitched.

After tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, Hikari brought her head downwards, but stopped after three inches were enveloped. She tried to force down more of him, but she could feel her gag reflex beginning to show.

Naruto's eyes widened as she began to bob her head up and down, while her tongue drew figure-eights around the head of his penis. Naruto groaned as he felt his balls tightening. He tried to hold it back not wanting her to stop but was failing. "Hi-hime, I-I'm cumming!" He groaned.

Hikari's only reply was to increase the suction and bob her head faster. With a groan, Naruto shot his seed into her mouth. Hikari's eyes widened as she quickly swallowed the salty liquid, and released Naruto's penis after licking him clean.

Naruto drew a deep breath as he got up and positioned his penis by Hikari's entrance. Hikari's back was on the bed, and she moaned with need when Naruto rubbed his penis against her entrance; teasing her.

"Naruto-kun, stop teasing me!"

Naruto nodded, and bucked his hips forward; penetrating her barrier in one go. Hikari's eyes widened and she bit her lip to keep from screaming out, the pain was horrible but in the pain she felt an amazing feeling. Naruto slowly moved back, and she moaned loudly. As he thrust in again, Hikari could feel the pain overtaking the pleasure, and her eyes slowly glazed over. "Faster," She murmured.

Naruto picked up the pace, and he began to pant slightly from exertion. He leaned forward and began to fondle her left breast in one hand, and lick the other with his mouth; while keeping up a steady pace. Hikari moaned loudly, and she brought her head up to kiss him. Naruto returned the kiss, and the two of them fought for dominance, their tongues twisting and locking in a dance of passion and love.

Finally, they pulled back, and Naruto smirked. "It's time for a change in position."

Before Hikari could respond, Naruto brought her into his lap, and placed his hands on her waist. Hikari's eyes widened as she felt his meat hit a spot she didn't know existed, and she moaned without restraint. "S-so deep…" She mumbled.

Naruto grinned as he began to knead her breasts. Neither of them noticed the crimson yoki that was beginning to leak from him, and thankfully, neither did Konoha.

Hikari suddenly pushed Naruto down, and began to move her own hips. "Let me do the rest of the work, Naruto-kun."

Naruto's breath hitched in his throat as he felt her lips convulse on him, and he nearly came right then and there. "H-holy…"

Hikari grinned deviously, but her grin suddenly faded when she felt his penis impact her womb. For a moment, she revelled in the pain, and began to grind around while clenching her lips together. Naruto groaned and Hikari moaned loudly as she fell forward onto his stomach and her hips moved of their own accord.

She could tell that she was almost at her limit. She gasped as Naruto began to play with her breasts. Hikari's eyes widened and she quickly informed him, "I'm cumming!"

Naruto groaned once more as he murmured, "Me too…"

"Then cum!" She cried, "Cum inside me!" Naruto complied, and with a large groan; his hips bucked forward, and his seed spurted deep into her womb. The two of them collapsed, and Hikari dreamily smiled. "That was amazing…"

"Yeah," Naruto panted.

Hikari climbed off of him, and lay beside him. She cuddled up to his naked chest, and hugged him towards her. "I'll kick your ass if I'm pregnant," She muttered.

Naruto stroked her hair slowly. "I'll gladly accept it,  
Hi-hime."

_**---End Lemon; **__10 Minutes Earlier---_

Saimei held his ear to the door and channelled a small amount of chakra. He suddenly paled when he heard somebody moan, "S-so deep."

Saimei slowly backed away from the door, and Isae, who was staring at him questioningly, asked, "So, who's in there?"

Saimei paled even more, "Let's leave…"

Isae raised an eyebrow and placed her own ear to the door, and she blushed. "Alright, let's go train!"

Ukito narrowed his eyes at them and accidently channelled fire chakra to his ears, causing him to hiss in pain. "Yeah, I'm going to go…"

_---The Next Day---_

Naruto yawned as he checked his equipment again. "Sealing materials, check… Sealing scrolls, check. Summoning scrolls, check…" Naruto nodded thoughtfully. "Pocky… check."

With a yawn, Naruto sealed everything inside a scroll and hastily shoved it into his pocket. He looked at the clock and smirked. "2 hours and 59 minutes late…"

Naruto used the Shunshin to quickly appear by the east gate, and once he'd arrived there, he blinked. His students were… in a strange state of being.

Ukito was rubbing his ears in annoyance, Saimei was blushing while adjusting his pants, and Isae refused to meet his gaze. Naruto blinked once more, before finally sighing, "Alright, what did I miss?"

"N-nothing," Isae replied. "L-let's just go!"

Naruto blinked. "Alright… Hang on, is that a trickle of blood coming from your noise, Saimei-kun?"

Saimei quickly dabbed at his noise and grinned widely, "N-not at all, sensei!"

Naruto narrowed his eyes, "Whatever…"

The trip to Kiri was uneventful. Naruto was almost disappointed when the nearby nuke-nin took one look at him, the bingo book, and then ran the hell away. "Maybe I shouldn't have made a name for myself," Naruto muttered. Indeed, he was now known as 'Naruto the Demon' for all of the horrible corpses he'd left behind when required to kill. It wasn't as if it was _his_ fault they decided to challenge him. _"Atleast Iwa won't send an assassin after me again. That last time probably scared them away from it."_

Naruto chuckled slightly; ignoring the strange looks from his perverted and/or masochistic students. After a few minutes, the mist which was prevalent in the air began to get thicker, and Naruto could sense small remnants of chakra within it. "Alright guys, we're almost at Kirigakure no Sato. Remember, no maiming, raping, killing, or torture unless otherwise specified, alright?" Naruto cheerfully asked.

Isae, Saimei, and Ukito paled at his suggestions. "Sensei… who would do that?" Saimei finally asked.

"Well…" Naruto trailed off, remembering a few Chûnin exams he'd secretly observed while he was with Jiraiya. "Let's not ask." Naruto stopped, took out a scroll, and handed it to Ukito. "Alright Ukito, this scroll will summon me. Only use it if you're going to die, because it'll disqualify the three of you. Remember, I trust you to use it when one of you is going to die."

Ukito solemnly nodded. Saimei frowned, "Why didn't you give me the scroll, Sensei?"

"If the scroll burns, it'll summon me," Naruto shrugged. "Ukito can do it a lot faster than you guys."

"Don't normal scrolls activate when opened?" Isae asked.

"They do, but they could easily slip open accidently," Naruto replied. He walked up to the gate guards and handed them the team's identification. "Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto, Konoha Jōnin sensei for Yamamato Isae, Hinote Ukito and Takahashi Saimei. We're here for the Chûnin exams."

The Kiri Chûnin briefly scanned the identification, before handing it back. "Alright, during your stay here, there will be no maiming, raping, killing or torturing unless otherwise specified. You'll have to sign in with the Mizukage before you will officially be allowed to participate."

Naruto smirked when he saw the dumbfounded looks from his genin. "Of course. Thanks, Chûnin-san."

The Chûnin nodded, and Team 7 walked down to the Mizukage's mansion. Not that he'd admit it, but he knew where it was from one of Jiraiya's trips here. Who would've thought that half of Kirigakure no Sato idolized Jiraiya? It almost made Naruto want to write a book like that just so he could get easy access into all the Shinobi Villages.

Then, he remembered Hikari.

With a sigh, Naruto knocked on the door to Hoshimi's office. He was somewhat amazed that his genin team could keep quiet for this long, but then again, it was to be expected. He heard a muffled "Come in," through the door, so he opened it and walked in with his team.

"Morning, Nee-chan," Naruto casually waved to Hoshimi. "I'm here with my genin team; they want to enter the Chûnin exams."

Saimei, Ukito, and Isae stared at Naruto with their mouths slightly agape; shocked at how familiar he was acting with the Mizukage. They were quietly wondering whether or not he would be killed now.

"Really?" Hoshimi asked. "Alright then, what're your names?"

"I'm Yamamato Isae."

"Hinote Ukito."

"Takahashi Saimei, future Hokage!" Saimei grinned.

"Wasn't that your dream once, Naruto?" Hoshimi asked as she jotted something down on a sheet of paper.

"It was," Naruto evenly responded. "Though it was only a dream."

"True…" Hoshimi smiled slightly. "Still, it could've been reality."

"It could have," Naruto sighed. "Oh well. Sorry to waste your time, Nee-chan."

"It was no problem. I look forward to seeing you three perform in the Chûnin exams."

Naruto sighed as the three of his students walked out of the office. Hoshimi gave him a questioning look, and he handed Hoshimi a scroll. "Do you think you could take care of this?" He asked.

She scanned the scroll and raised an eyebrow. "It's possible, but why do you need these materials?"

"Konoha will move against me soon," Naruto replied. "It would be foolish not to be prepared."

Her eyes widened in understanding, and then she frowned. "Couldn't you simply take refuge in Suna?"

"Suna and Konoha are allies," Naruto replied. "Despite how the Kazekage feels, he'll be forced to hand me over."

Hoshimi sighed as she tucked the scroll into her pocket. "I'll see what I can do, but I won't make any promises."

Naruto's lips turned upwards, "Thanks Nee-chan."

He walked out of the room towards his waiting genin, who didn't even ask what he was doing. Naruto briefly wondered why they'd been acting so weird since they'd left Konoha. He finally stopped in front of their hotel and turned to face the three genin. "Alright, what's wrong? You three have been acting weird ever since we've left Konoha."

Isae and Saimei blushed. Ukito rubbed his ears in annoyance again. "I-it's nothing, S-sensei."

Naruto frowned. "I'd like to know the truth."

"W-well, you see, w-we wanted to know where you'd been going, so the day before we left to come here…"

Naruto paled. "You followed me?"

"We're so sorry!" Saimei cried. "We didn't think it'd be something so…"

Naruto's eye twitched. "You followed me after practice…?" _"I didn't notice…? Oh god, that means that they either heard or saw it all… Crap, what to do, what to do?!"_

Naruto mentally nodded to himself as he quickly performed hand-seals.

"S-sensei, what are you doing?" Saimei asked in fear.

Naruto sighed in relief as he finished his technique and sealed that memory off.

_---In Konoha---_

Hikari groaned as she wiped the bile off of her lips and flushed the toilet. "I feel like crap," She muttered. "On top of that, I'm throwing up?" Suddenly, her eyes narrowed. "It couldn't be…"

Hikari sighed. "It's time for a doctor's visit…"

_---Chûnin Exams---_

"Alright, listen up," The Chûnin commanded. "I'm Morono Ibiko, and I'm going to be your proctor for this stage of the Chûnin exams! Now sit down, shut up, and I'll only say this once! Your test is to finish this test by finding out who in the room has the answers! There's only one person, and you get five attempts! You have 1 hour, starting now! Oh, and your entire team has to find the person on their own."

_---With Naruto---_

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "That's simple," He muttered. "It's the person who's looking, but not actively attempting to find that same person. It's a simple test of reading body language, and luck."

Naruto shrugged as he walked out of the Jōnin lounge. He wandered the streets, until he found a store called 'Naiya Jewellers'. His interest peaked, Naruto walked inside and stared at all the… shiny… metals…

_"So… shiny…" _Naruto thought. He found himself drawn towards a simple ring, and he stared at it for a minute. It was a silver ring which held a small black diamond on it. Nothing more, nothing less.

_---Flashback---_

"_You know exactly why," Naruto replied. "If she's a human, then we can be mates. If she's your reincarnation, then when she dies… her soul will be returned to you."_

_---End Flashback---_

Naruto nodded to himself. _"Well, we can atleast be together in this life…"_

5 minutes later, Naruto walked out of that store with a lighter heart, and a small ring in his hand.

_---Chûnin Exams---_

"Damn it, how are we supposed to find the person with the answers to the test?" Saimei grumbled. "Even if we find that person, then what?"

_"Alright kids, today we're going to learn about body language," Iruka stated. "Flip to page…"_

Saimei's eyes widened. _"If we can read their body language, then we can figure out who it is…" _Saimei quickly signalled his assumption to his teammates, who began to think.

_"The person who has the answers…" _Ukito narrowed his eyes.

_"Would it be him?" _Isae looked at the boy in front of her who was confidently leaning backwards. After a moment she shook her head. _"He's __too__ confident. A decoy."_

Suddenly, her eyes widened. Ukito had found their 'target'!

The three of them consecutively frowned once they'd noted the number of the person with the answers. _"Now what?"_ they asked themselves.

_"A shinobi never does more than required," Naruto stated in a monotonous voice. "Anyways, to kill a person, you just have to slit their throat and let them drown in their own blood!" He cheerily finished._

Saimei shuddered.

_"Your test is to finish this test by finding out who in the room has answers!"_

_"It's not concrete whether or not we actually have to do the actual test. It's also unviable for all of us to cheat off of one person… So, they've probably had more than one person in here," _Ukito concluded.

_"Since a shinobi must anticipate their enemy's moves, they assumed that we would assume that an overly overconfident person would be a decoy…" _Isae concluded.

_"What are we supposed to do?!" _Saimei mentally screamed. _"No, wait, I can do this! We only have to find out who has the answers! Yet I can't help thinking that our logic is flawed…"_

_---With Hikari---_

"I think I know what the problem is," The doctor said. "We'll have to have a physical done to be sure, though."

Hikari shrugged. "That's fine with me; I'm overdue for a physical anyways."

_---Minato---_

"Any news on Shina-chan yet?" He asked Jiraiya.

"Sorry, Minato," Jiraiya sighed. "It's almost as if she's disappeared off of the grid. I've heard reports of a red-haired woman, but it's quite possible that she's dead."

Minato wiped a tear away from his eyes. "I refuse to believe that! They never found a corpse!"

"Minato…" Jiraiya muttered. "You know as well as I do that some corpses were incinerated by the Kyuubi's yoki."

_---With Naruto---_

Naruto sighed as he walked near the edge of the village, taking in the sights and people. He was completely aware of the ANBU tailing him, but they were of no concern to him.

"No! Fuck off!" He heard somebody yell from a nearby alleyway. Naruto narrowed his eyes and raced to the alleyway, only to see…

A woman with long, red hair which he assumed would extend up until her hips. She had gray eyes, and an oval-shaped face. Her fair skin was unblemished, and her hair was held together on the left side by a simple hair clip. She was wearing an orange vest, and blue pants which reminded Naruto of a shinobi.

But that wasn't what worried Naruto. What truly worried him were her eyes. When they locked eyes, he knew.

"Okaa-san…" Naruto muttered.

"Don't you want to have fun with me, Kaede-chan?" The man who was attempting to rip off her clothes asked.

He was a pudgy man who Naruto assumed hadn't showered for days.

"I said fuck off!" She yelled. "I sure as hell don't want to date somebody like you!"

"Aww, you hurt me, Kaede-chan," He grinned lecherously. "I'll just have to make you pay with your body!"

Naruto's eyes narrowed as he watched the man walk closer to her. When he began to reach for her vest, Naruto snapped. He moved in front of her as fast as he could, and grabbed the man's hand; mercilessly snapping it.

Her eyes widened as she took in his appearance. A white cloak moved in the wind, and his messy blonde hair moved with it.

_He looked towards her with his icy blue eyes which seemed to penetrate her soul. "What are you doing in Konoha?"_

_She couldn't respond. Responding meant that she'd have to stop focussing on him. He looked like… a hero._

"Minato…?" She whispered.

Naruto's eyes widened and he tossed the would-be rapist out of the alleyway, towards the waiting ANBU. Naruto regarded her seriously for a moment, and frowned. "A memory seal," He muttered. "The work of a seal master, but the only seal master that had been in Konoha for 12 years would be…"

"Excuse me?" Kaede asked. "I'd like to thank you for saving me, I'm Kaede."

Naruto nodded distractedly. "I'm Naruto. Do you live nearby?"

She rubbed her head in embarrassment, and Naruto was struck by how similar the two of them seemed. "Well, I used to live here, but I was evicted."

Naruto nodded thoughtfully. "Why don't you come with me, I can give you a place to stay while I'm here." She seemed to shrink away, so Naruto quickly continued, "I'm committed, don't worry about me taking advantage of you. You do know the way to the Rising Mist Hotel, right?"

She nodded and led the way, while Naruto stared at the seal on her neck with a frown. _"It's the work of Ero-sennin. But why…?"_

Naruto quickly formed a few hand seals and tapped her on the neck once; catching her before she could collapse.

After a minute, she opened her eyes and stared into Naruto's. "Minato-kun…?" She murmured.

To Be Continued.

* * *

**So, why would Jiraiya place a memory seal on Kushina? (Btw, that memory in italics "He looked like..." was just that: a memory. It's supposed to symbolize that the memory seal's starting to break).**

**Anyways, was there anything else of importance...?**

**Hmm, the end of this story will come pretty soon, I think. I might or might not write a sequel, it depends on the nature of the ending. Yupz.**

**Laterz**

**- TD Sugoi**

**(Je demands beaucoup livres!) [I demand more fiction. I didn't know the word for fiction, so I just put books. AKA: Reccomend any Non-NaruHina, Non-NaruSaku stories, Non-Yaoi. Did anybody notice that Naru x FemIta is actually appealing?)  
**


	24. After the Test

_**A story preview is attached at the end of this chapter. **__**If I ever get wind that somebody stole this, I won't do anything like this again. Nor will I write a single story for Fanfiction. Yeah, I've upped the bid. Your point?  
**_

**Yeah, it's been a while.**

**This chapter's been done (unedited) for approx. 2 weeks. I gave it to Darkfire a while back (he had complaints, and I thought he'd want to try his hand at fixing it), and he just sent it back today. He apparently has HW1N1. (Homework influenza).**

**Yupperz.**

**Updates are gonna kinda-sorta slow cuz schoolworks picking up. I've dubbed this week: "The week of tests." One FR test today, one SS test tmrw, and one Math test on friday. Hoorayz...**

**Anyways, today we have... Actually, I don't remember o.o**

**If you see any errors, blame Darkfire. (Don't forget to review and tell me about them. Yupp).  
**

* * *

"Nii-san," Hikari murmured as she placed a small bouquet of flowers upon a grave reading 'Uchiha Shisui'. "It's been a while since I've last been here, hasn't it? I guess I just couldn't face you after the so-called purging. You remember Naruto-kun? He and I are together now. I think that he can truly accomplish pea—" Hikari's eyes narrowed as she stared at the ground around the grave. _"It's disturbed… as if somebody dug it up…"_

Hikari's eyes widened as she activated her Sharingan to look at the ground. It indeed had small traces of a shovel being used. _"So the Sharingan has been stolen…"_

_---With Naruto---_

_"If she was sent away by Konoha itself, then she wouldn't be welcomed back," _Naruto mused as he munched on a stick of pocky. _"So I could either leave her here, or move up my plans…"_ A frown made its way onto his face. _"Am I truly ready to make a shinobi village?"_

With a sigh, Naruto locked the door and walked back to the place where the next portion of the exam would be taking place. When he'd finally reached there, he saw three irate students staring at him. "I missed it, didn't I?" Naruto asked rhetorically.

"Yup," Saimei deadpanned.

Naruto groaned. "So what happened?"

"We kicked ass, burnt ass, and ate a few tuna," Isae shrugged casually. "The tournament will be in two weeks."

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Two weeks, huh? Do you guys want to train or relax?" _"Will you give up, or work 'till you can't work anymore?"_

"Yosh! I'm training with Sensei!" Saimei declared proudly. Naruto winced; questioning his judgement regarding the introduction of Saimei and Lee.

"I'll train," Ukito shrugged.

"I'm not letting them leave _me_ behind!" Isae mock-scowled.

Naruto grinned, "Alright then. Here you go," He took three scrolls and handed one to each of them. "These have your training equipment for the next two weeks. We'll be working on your speed and endurance." Saimei grinned even wider. He'd already done this with Lee. "Saimei, you have twice the amount of weight they do." That wiped the grin off of his face.

"How much weight is there, sensei?" Isae asked hesitantly.

Naruto grinned. "Oh, not much. Just 50 pounds per limb."

Ukito, who'd taken that time to put the weights on… fell to the ground ungracefully. "Damn it!" He cursed.

Naruto shrugged. "If you think that's bad…" He revealed his own set of weights. "I wear 1,000 per limb."

Isae frowned. "B-but that's not possible… The sheer amount of pressure put on your limbs would _atleast _cause your bones to crack…"

Naruto shrugged. "Lee wore 250 per limb as a genin. I think he's at 750 by now. Anyways, after you've put the weights on, we'll go back to the hotel, grab some stuff, and I'll take you to our training grounds for the next 2 weeks."

Isae groaned and managed to put on the weights – without collapsing. Saimei stared at his weights with narrowed eyes. Finally, he tried lifting the arm weights. Saimei plummeted to the ground with an ungraceful 'OOMPH'.

Naruto chuckled, "Well, It seems like your flames of youth aren't burning brightly enough." Saimei growled and removed the already-present weights from his limbs, before wearing the ones Naruto had given him. Naruto blinked. "You already had weights?"

"I did," Saimei nodded sagely.

Naruto shrugged and the four of them walked towards the hotel. When Saimei walked in the room, he blinked. "Hey, uh, Naruto-sensei… why is there a woman lying in your bed?"

Isae's eyes widened, and she turned to glare at Naruto. "Yes sensei, why don't you tell us?" She asked in a voice which promised pain and torture.

Naruto shrugged. _"Hmm, to make a joke or not?" _"Well, you see, I found her on the streets, and she'd recently been evicted…"

"Is that any reason to put her in _your_ bed?!" Isae yelled.

Naruto cocked his head to the side. "Why shouldn't she be in my bed?"

"I think she's implying that you and that woman had…" Saimei trailed off.

Before Naruto could say anything, Ukito collapsed in the doorway. "Damn it all!" He cursed. "Why couldn't you wait for me?!"

Naruto turned to Ukito, a small smile making its way onto his face. "Why Ukito-kun, nice of you to join us!"

"Alright, enough dodging! Who the hell is she?!" Isae demanded. "We didn't come to Kirigakure no Sato just so you could score on some random lady!"

Naruto froze in place, and turned to Isae with an eerie smile on his face. She shivered. "Why, Isae-kun, are you implying that I cheated on my girlfriend back home?"

"N-no," Isae stuttered. She was afraid of him. The killing intent didn't help. Nor did the secret jutsu he was using to create small amounts of mist.

Suddenly, the mist cleared up, and the killing intent left. "Alright then," He cheerily replied. "That's all fine. Now then, why don't you wait outside for me? I'll be out after I get my stuff."

The three genin groaned, and Ukito sent him a glare which would've killed him on the spot – if looks could kill. Naruto sighed as they closed the door behind him, and he fingered a tri-pronged kunai. Without any further ado, Naruto threw it on the ground beside him, and Minato appeared in the location of the kunai.

"You need something?" Minato asked; his gaze sweeping the room. Suddenly, he froze and looked at the woman lying on Naruto's futon.

"Is she… Kushina?" Minato asked hopefully.

Naruto shrugged. "She is, but…" Naruto handed him a sheet of paper with a seal on it. "Does that look familiar to you?"

Minato narrowed his eyes. "Jiraiya's work…" He muttered. "So I can't take her back to the village, can I?"

"Doubt it," Naruto replied. "I'll be training with my students for the next two weeks, and then I'll take her somewhere she'll be safe. If things progress as they are, we'll see her soon."

Minato sighed. "Alright, thanks Naruto."

"No problem, otou-san," Naruto replied with a nod. "Anyways, I'll take my genin now. See you when the Chûnin exams end."

Minato nodded wearily, and took a seat beside Kushina. Naruto smiled softly, and closed the door without making any noise. _"I wonder why Ero-sennin did this…"_

_**Later**_

Naruto sighed and led his genin to an abandoned area within the mist. "Is this where we're training?" Ukito asked.

Naruto shook his head. "Nope." He made a few seals and the four of them ended up in a forest. "_This_ is where we're training."

Saimei's eyes widened. "This is awesome! How'd you do that, sensei?!"

"It's just long-range teleportation," Naruto shrugged. "You're all stranded here for the next two weeks, and only I can get you out."

"So… how'll we train?" Isae asked.

"Well," Naruto grinned maliciously. "Let's start off with running! You need to get used to those weights! To start with, you can run 2 miles out, then back. Then, you'll do 100 push-ups on your knuckles, followed by 200 crunches. After that, we'll start with your _real _training."

Isae blanched. Saimei groaned. Ukito showed no emotion while inwardly seething.

"Well? What're you waiting for? Get to it!" Naruto snapped. The three of them sighed and began to run, while Naruto took out a notepad and began to write in it. "Hmm, what to write…" Naruto frowned thoughtfully, and his pencil began to move while he murmured, "Within the endless wetlands which were surrounding Amegakure, there was a lone building; sheathed in eternal darkness…"

Naruto suddenly looked up and stared at a panting Saimei. "Done already?" Saimei simply nodded and collapsed. Naruto sighed, "If you can't handle this, how'll you manage the Chûnin exams?"

"Why can't you just teach us techniques, sensei?! I understand that the basics are important, but don't you think we've got a good handle on them?" Saimei whined.

Naruto blinked thoughtfully – though he'd be damned if he knew why it looked like a _thoughtful _blink – and shrugged. "If you can't handle this, then you can't handle any of my techniques."

Saimei narrowed his eyes and yelled, "What're you talking about?! Of course I can do this; I'm going to be Hokage! Believe it!"

Naruto blinked. _"Believe it, eh… I'd swear this kid has my old personality in him." _Naruto chuckled, "I'd love to teach you a technique, but the weakest one I have… could probably fry your brain if you screw up. Although, I suppose it would be interesting to watch you learn one of my own techniques…"

Saimei gulped.

_---Two Weeks Later---_

Naruto raised an eyebrow as he watched the fight between Saimei and some unnamed genin from Iwa. "That's just sad," Naruto muttered as he saw the genin dodge a kick from Saimei only to be hit by a punch to the head; knocking him out.

"The winner is Takahashi Saimei!" The proctor declared.

Next was Ukito. It was absolutely no challenge. He just kept on attacking with fire until his opposition ran out of chakra. This had nothing to do with the fact that it only took him a small morsel of chakra to fuel an A-Ranked fire jutsu. Absolutely nothing at all.

Lastly, Isae fought all her battles well, and she took them all out with efficient chakra scalpels to their tendons; disabling them. For a moment, Naruto couldn't help but wonder if she'd taken the word 'efficiency' too far.

Finally, the last match – a three-way match, due to circumstances – was between the three teammates. Naruto wanted to laugh at the odds of that. Though he couldn't, so instead he yelled, "I don't care which one of you wins so long as you don't mess up the stadium!"

There were chuckles at that, and he got four glares – three from his team, one from Tsunade. "This is a horrible match-up," Naruto casually stated.

"Since they know each other's strengths and weaknesses," Tsunade surmised dryly.

"Although, if I had to bet, it'd be on Saimei," Naruto frowned as he saw Tsunade's hand moving towards her purse. "If _you_ had to bet, it'd be on Isae. She's a fledgling iryō-nin."

"Are you underestimating her?" Tsunade asked; a dangerous glint in her eyes.

"Not at all," Naruto replied. "It's more likely that this'll end as a triple-knockout."

Indeed, the battle did end as a triple knockout. In the beginning, Isae seemed to be winning, but she was unable to cut any of Ukito's tendons or muscles without injuring herself. Then, Ukito seemed to be winning, but Saimei was able to kick faster than Ukito could bring fire to protect himself. Eventually, the three of them were manoeuvred into a corner somehow, and they all gave up on planning and simply slugged the other. AKA: Isae punched Saimei in the face, Saimei punched Ukito and Ukito punched Isae.

Naruto stared at the three collapsed genin and sighed. "Is it too much to ask for a clear winner?"

"Apparently, it is," Hoshimi stated. "You did train them quite well. I believe they're currently at high-Chûnin level right now?"

"Close," Naruto replied. "I've taught them the art of killing as well; something I told them never to use on each other. If they did use those techniques, it might be low-Jōnin. At the most."

"All in three months," Tsunade muttered. After exchanging some more pleasantries, Tsunade walked over to Naruto, handed him a scroll, and simply walked to her contingent. Naruto opened the scroll and raised an eyebrow as he read it.

_Naruto –_

_Need to talk to you, it's important._

– _Hikari_

"Well, this works out well…" Naruto muttered as he fingered a ring inside his pocket.

_**Later**_

He walked towards the hospital, where he saw three irate genin. "So, do you three understand where you messed up?"

"No…" Saimei muttered.

"Did you know that the enemy of your enemy is technically your friend?" Naruto asked. "That was rhetorical by the way. Two of you should have teamed up on each other and actually worked together. While two of you did occasionally team up on one, you never exercised proper teamwork."

"We tried," Ukito mumbled.

"We just expected the other person to be able to cover all the bases," Isae stated matter-of-factly.

"You have to be able to adjust on the field," Naruto sighed. "Whatever. They're announcing the Chûnin tomorrow, and all three of you have a good chance."

"Really?" Saimei asked enthusiastically.

"Yeah, they can't really blame you for messing up on the last one. Although…" Naruto trailed off thoughtfully. _"It __was__ the bloody mist…"_

"Awesome! We might get promoted!" Saimei cried. Isae giggled lightly, and even Ukito managed to crack a smile.

Naruto chuckled and ruffled their hair. "You guys did well. I'll give you your presents before we reach Konoha."

_---Three Days Later---_

"Damn you Ukito," Saimei grumbled. "Making Chûnin all on your own…

"Atleast you guys tried," Naruto muttered. "Alright, since we're leaving today, I might as well give you your presents."

Naruto reached into his backpack, took out a scroll and swiped some of his blood across a seal. The three genin leaned in, only to see… three scrolls pop out. "What the hell?! Why would you seal a scroll inside of a scroll?!" Saimei yelled.

"It's more convenient," Isae stated.

"Sensei is lazy," Ukito coughed.

Naruto rolled his eyes. "These are summoning contracts I came across on my travels. Saimei, you get panther, Ukito gets tiger, and Isae gets hawk. Mind you, these contracts are extremely rare. I hope you don't simply sell these contracts."

Naruto handed them the contracts, and chuckled as he saw the looks on their face. "Sadly, these are also parting gifts for our dear Ukito."

"You're not leaving, are you? You… don't suck," Ukito stated after a moment of consideration.

Naruto blinked. "Gee, thanks, Ukito. I didn't know you cared. No, I'm not leaving you. It's just that, _technically_, you have to take Chûnin courses at the academy," Naruto grinned thinking about how much _fun_ he'd have in sexual education, "and all genin teams are broken up after the majority of the genin make Chûnin. Although, technically, you'll still train with us after you take those mandatory Chûnin courses."

Ukito perked up, "So… I'm not leaving the team?"

"I won't let you be kicked out," Naruto replied. "It's the promise of a lifetime!" Naruto grinned as he took the nice-guy pose – as Lee affectionately dubbed it.

"That's lame," Isae muttered.

Naruto shrugged. "That's life. Anyways, we're at Konoha."

"State your name, business and authorization, Naruto-kun," Kotetsu sighed.

"Of course, Kotetsu-_sama_," Naruto snorted. "Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto, Jōnin of Konohagakure no Sato returning from the Chûnin exams."

"Did your little tykes get promoted?" Izumo asked after stifling a yawn.

"Only Ukito did," Naruto chuckled. "They knocked each other out in the last match, and the judges rethought their decisions on Isae and Saimei."

"Alright then, Hokage-sama would probably want to see them…" Kotetsu trailed off when he saw Naruto Shunshin away; leaving his precious genin to run towards the Hokage tower.

_**Later**_

"The Fourth Great Shinobi War is coming soon, Obaa-chan," Naruto stated once he'd appeared in Tsunade's office.

"What makes you say that?" Tsunade sighed.

"Iwa has been conspiring with Kusagakure no Sato, Otogakure no Sato and Kumogakure no Sato. I think the latter's still pissed 'cuz I kicked the ass of their 'Nibi-chan'," Naruto snorted.

"Any proof?" Tsunade asked.

"Uchiha Madara is alive, and in charge of Akatsuki. He hates Konoha, wants me. Connect the dots," Naruto stated. _"Hmm, if life plays out anything like a story would, we'll probably have me fighting against Madara and winning before we get to see the epilogue…"_

Tsunade groaned and massaged her temples.

Ukito burst in and pointed at Naruto. "Oi! Why the hell did you run away without us?!"

Naruto blinked. "Are you seriously Ukito?"

Ukito looked away defiantly. "I mean…"

"Ah, don't worry about it. I just had to tell Tsunade-sama something in private. Anyways, I'm sure she'll want to talk to you guys now," Naruto waved him off as he left the room. "See you later, kids." Ukito scowled; while Saimei and Isae sent questioning looks towards him. "I've got a hot date tonight," Naruto explained.

Tsunade snickered. "With her _fist_, maybe… Whatever… congratulations, gaki."

Naruto blinked. After a moment of awkward silence, he used the Shunshin to reach Hikari's apartment, and he knocked on the door. She opened the door and stared at him. Naruto coughed. "So, you said you need to see me?" He asked. _"Anger, happiness, depression… Oh shit, I'm screwed… Wait, is that…?"_

Naruto was so engrossed within his thoughts; he didn't see her walk behind him and kick his butt. Naruto yowled, "What was that for?"

"Fulfilling a promise," Hikari stated.

_"Wait… Don't tell me…" _Naruto blanched.

_"I'll kick your ass if I'm pregnant," She muttered._

_"Whatever… congratulations, gaki."_

"I… you… you're…" Naruto stuttered. After a moment of incomprehensible stuttering, he fainted.

Hikari cocked her head to the side. "Was it something I said?"

After Naruto woke up, he stared at Hikari and blinked. "Why am I lying on the bed? It's only mid-afternoon, and I don't remember us…"

"I'm pregnant," Hikari slowly stated.

"You…" Naruto's eyes widened and his brain went into overdrive. Three seconds later, he fainted once more, and Hikari sighed.

"That was only funny the first time," She mumbled.

Finally, when Naruto had woken up for good, he had a silly grin on his face. Just as Hikari was about to ask him if all was well; he enthusiastically grabbed her hands. "This is great!" He exclaimed. "I've always wanted a kid…" He trailed off slowly, and frowned. "Hi-chan, could you come with me?"

"Huh?" Hikari blinked. Naruto grabbed her hand and (willingly) dragged her off to the Hokage monument, where the two of them sat on the Yondaime's head.

"You know, I also wanted to talk to you when I got back," Naruto started after a moment of silence. "I'm not that good with words, so I'll just skip the cliché crap and say it. Uchiha Natsuko, Uzumaki Hikari… will you marry me?"

Hikari blinked. "Well…" She trailed off.

_---Next Day---_

As Naruto walked to the Hokage tower, he had a stupid grin on his face, and he seemed to be wearing it like he would a badge. When he finally reached Tsunade's office, he entered without knocking and sat on the couch. "You wanted me, Obaa-chan?"

Tsunade sighed. "Iwa's began to stockpile food, Kumo has started stockpiling weapons, and Oto has actually started to show its face. I was wondering if you'd be willing to lead the war effort against Iwagakure no Sato alone."

Naruto frowned thoughtfully. "How many men would I get?"

"One," Tsunade replied as she massaged her temples.

Naruto frowned. "Just one person," He repeated. "It's possible, but I don't think I can keep—"

"It's Minato," She interrupted him. "The council was hoping that the two of you would use Hiraishin to simply decimate Iwa and make them reconsider."

Naruto frowned. "That's awfully risky of them. Which one of us are they trying to get rid of?"

"Well, our dear Yondaime is untouchable," She snorted. "They understand that you're their son and all, but apparently they have issues with a certain Kitsune."

Naruto groaned. "I'm getting too old for this shit," He muttered.

"Tell me about it," Tsunade replied as she took a drink of sake straight out of the bottle.

"Anyways, Obaa-chan… I bought some sake from Kiri," He handed her a bottle. "If you'll excuse me, I've got a team to train the hell out of."

Tsunade was so enraptured by the presence of new sake that she ignored him leaving. Naruto shrugged and jumped out the window… only to nearly collide with Jiraiya.

_"He also needs to see her apparently," _Naruto mused as he jumped towards Training Grounds 7. Seeing Isae and Saimei there, he began talking. "Alright, I'm going to start training you guys so that you'll be able to handle the next Chûnin exams on your own." _"Or the war."_

"How will you train us, Sensei?" Isae asked.

"Will you teach us some cool jutsu?" Saimei asked.

"I'm going to teach you how to use elements in their purest form," Naruto stated. "Either way… find a leaf and burn it with your chakra. That's all I will tell you."

Saimei groaned. "Sensei, I'm… we're not Ukito! We can't do that crap!"

Naruto smirked. "Oh really?" He grabbed a leaf off of a tree and channelled chakra into it. The leaf burst into flames, and Saimei watched in awe. "You _can_ do it. It's simply hard to do if you don't have an affinity. Either way, manipulating elements in their purest form is a high level skill. The Nidaime Hokage mastered this skill. How else do you think he made water appear out of thin air?"

A slow grin began to appear on Saimei's face, and he started to giggle insanely. "I'll finally kick Ukito-temee's ass… After all this time…"

Naruto paled. _"I'm teaching a psychopath?"_

"Shut up!" Isae yelled as she smacked him across the head. Saimei pouted.

"As I was saying… burn the crap out of that leaf, alright?" Naruto asked rhetorically.

Saimei groaned.

5 hours later, the leaf hadn't even been singed. Naruto sighed, "Alright then… I'm going to teach you kids how to jump on trees. Technically a genin level skill, but apparently, history is far more important than that. Anyways, you basically bend your knees, and as you release to jump; send chakra through your legs to increase the force."

Saimei's first attempt was hilarious. He stood on a tree, bent his knees, and… fell face-first onto the ground.

Isae's first attempt was slightly better. Instead of falling face-first; she got clothes-lined by a branch. Naruto snorted as he watched her fall to the ground slowly. Finally, when it seemed she was going to hit the ground; Naruto caught her. After steadying her, Naruto sighed. "Anyways, we've got another C-Rank to eliminate a group of bandits. I'm going to leave this mission to the two of you."

To Be Continued

* * *

**So, yeah. If you guys think that something should go wrong in this mission, go ahead and tell me what. Also feel free to tell me what Saimei and Isae will do... Seriously.**

**Also, I've got like 7 new story ideas. Kinda sad, isn't it? Anyways, once again: Steal my ideas = your death = my quitting writing. Actually, tbh, if I quit writing for more than 2 months, I'll prob quit forever or move to a new section. But, hey, I'll atleast tell you guys my plans. That's the upside, right? I mean... who gives a crap if I stop writing and simply _tell_ you guys what I plan to release? (*sarcasm* I mean, that's obviously the best way to tell a story. Summarizing it in 100 words. *sarcasm*)**

**Meh. I'm pretty sure the R+V section needs more limes in it, doesn't it? *pretends to think* Or maybe Enchanted Arms... It _was_ a damn good game...  
**

**_FF Story Idea #?: Changing Loyalties: Not Telling_**

_"That night… was by far; one of the most terrifying nights I've ever had the privilege to take part in. Guess what? It's also the second best night of my life._

_But then, who the hell would dare to say that a night of consummation isn't the best thing that can happen to you?_

_That night… I lost my friends and my old life. I irrevocably changed fate, and I'm all the better for it."_

_Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto_

_Former Hokage Aspirate of Konohagakure no Sato._

_ The woods were silent with a sense of foreboding permeating through the cold air. The streams were lightly freezing over, and a lone bird flew off into the distance. The sky was dark, and the only source of light was the stars twinkling far above the land. A wanderer could be forgiven if he or she assumed that the silence was peaceful._

_ Of course, it was anything but._

_ Suddenly, the sound of a multitude of birds chirping filled the air. A second later, it was deeply contrasted by the low tenor achieved through the warping of sound waves._

_ "Sasuke-temee," A blond boy roared; his voice sounding demonic. Within seconds; his depthless cerulean eyes became malicious crimson orbs, with vertically slit-shaped pupils. The vicious blue orb within his hand soon turned violet; tainted by his inner demon._

_ "Dobe," Sasuke sneered in response._

_ No more words were exchanged between the two. None were needed. The two adolescents ran towards each other as fast as they could manage, and their two attacks met each other head on._

_ As they thrust their arms forwards; the blond boy using his right, Sasuke using his left, Sasuke's arm slipped, and he plunged his attack into his friend's arm._

_ Sasuke's eyes widened as he looked down. "Naruto…" He muttered weakly._

_ Naruto's eyes widened, and he began to hyperventilate. The only reason that Sasuke hadn't flown back was due to the arm currently embedded in Naruto's shoulder. Yet, that only made the attack worse for Sasuke, who currently had blood leaking out of his stomach._

_ "No…" Naruto muttered. He quickly scooped up Sasuke and ran towards the forest. As soon as he reached the forest; Naruto took the largest leap he'd ever achieved in his life._

_ He was vaguely aware of his sensei passing him by; likely on his way to stop the fight between the two. Naruto simply didn't care. His entire being was focussed on getting back to his village of residence, Konohagakure no Sato, before Sasuke's life force dried out._

_ He was so dedicated that he seemed not to notice the blood which was forcing its way up through his oesophagus, nor his leg – which by all means should be unusable._

_ Soon, he saw the gates of Konoha, and he could slowly feel his strength leaving him. Naruto landed in front of the gate, and quickly told the gate guard to let him in._

_ "I'm afraid we have procedures for this," The guard slowly drawled; seemingly trying to stall him._

_ Naruto gritted his teeth in frustration. "Sasuke's dying! Can't you atleast take him to the hospital or something?"_

_ The man suddenly seemed to notice Sasuke, and he moved faster than Naruto thought possible. It filled Naruto's mouth with a bitter taste. They were willing to move quickly for the great Uchiha Sasuke, but not for the so-called 'Kyuubi brat'._

_ The man barked out orders, and turned to Naruto; a sneer on his face. "What, you're still here?" Naruto bit back a curse towards the man, and walked into the village; each footstep seeming forced. The man seemed to smirk at that, and he grabbed onto Naruto's collar. "Did I __say that you're allowed to go inside?"_

_ Naruto's eyes widened. He could tell that even his limitless stamina was starting to disappear, and he knew he had to do something soon._

_ Luckily for him, intervention came in the form of his sensei, Hatake Kakashi. "I do believe that holding up a Konoha-nin is considered treason," The man lazily stated as he snapped his book shut. He cheerily looked towards the guard, who shuddered at the cold edge to his voice. "Let's try not to let it happen again, shall we?"_

_ The guard mutely nodded, and let Naruto go. Naruto sighed in relief. "Thanks a lot, sensei!" Suddenly, he frowned. "Hey, Kakashi-sensei, when'd you make clones of yourself?"_

_ Naruto seemed to careen on his feet, and the world went black.

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**Yeah, it's epic, isn't it? I'm just that cool.**

**This story won't come out till Changing Loyalties First does. I think.**

**My next story... I only have a hard-copy. You can know this though: It's 1st person POV, fiction (NON-FF), and I plan to edit it sooo much (once it's done) that I can publish it and make enough money for post-secondary (dibs on Harvard Med) off of it.**

**_To the idiots: *sarcasm* indicates sarcasm. It means that the comment is not serious. I don't want to stop writing if my work is stolen. Though, I will, without a second thought._**

**Yeah, I sound paranoid. Thing is, I've had my hard work stolen _way_ too many times for comfort.**

**Laterz  
**


	25. Chapter 25 and AN

**This is only what I've done so far. I've been working really hard on the story, but in retrospect, it is complete and utter crap.**

**I think. I dunno if that's me talking or the depression.**

**Which brings me to my next point: Story's on hold for a while. My Dad's died, and I noticed that I tend to sulk when left alone. Now, I do my best writing when left alone, but that requires me to be focussed...**

**Basically; I may post a few chapters here and there, but it'll probably still be on hold.**

**Rest assured, though: I'm probably just gonna wake up one morning and say, "Ah, screw it." and simply write one 10k chapter to finish the story. I've noticed that I tend to focus on _Different Circumstances_ 'cuz it's new, and un-crappy (for now).**

**Below this line is everything I've worked on from the last update till now. Sad, huh?  
**

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Wow, OnS is in a community… I feel like an actual writer now o.o**

**Well, I had to force myself to write this. If it reads like crap… Idk. This is probably why I second-guessed myself on posting Diff. Circumstances. The only reason I went through with it in the end, is 'cuz I was scared that somebody else would take the idea.**

Hikari sighed as she rubbed her stomach.

_---Flashback---_

_ "Well, what do we have here?" The man with the orange-spiral mask chuckled. "Another living Uchiha…?"_

_ Hikari narrowed her eyes. "Who are you?"_

_ "I suppose you deserve to know… traitorous kin of mine," The man chuckled as he removed his mask. Hikari's arm went rigid when she saw the three-tomoe Sharingan in his eyes. "I will give you one chance to join me now…"_

_ "Never!" She spat. "You took the eyes of your own brother! You led the Kyuubi to attack Konohagakure no Sato! I refuse to side with somebody like you, Uchiha Madara!"_

_ "Very well then," He narrowed his eyes at her. "I suppose you leave me with no choice. Consider this your one and only warning. You have two years to live starting today. I will have you either submit to me, or face the same fate as the other Uchiha whom met my blade on the day of the massacre."_

_ Madara laughed and disappeared without any trace of his presence. Hikari's eyes widened, and she began to shudder uncontrollably. "No…" She muttered. "I couldn't defeat Itachi then… not even now… This man is said to be even more powerful than him!" 'I can't tell Naruto-kun… he should live without worrying about me… But… what can I do?'_

_ As she walked through the streets of Konoha, Hikari heard a woman talking about her pregnancy, and how overjoyed her husband was. Hikari's eyes became determined, and she nodded thoughtfully. 'For Naruto-kun's happiness… I'll give him my virginity, and leave his legacy…'_

_---End Flashback---_

_---With Naruto's Team---_

"So, how do you plan to take care of the bandits?" Naruto casually asked.

"We need numbers," Isae murmured.

"Location," Saimei continued.

"_Tactics_," Naruto stressed.

After staring at the camp of bandits for a moment, Isae frowned. "We get to tell you what to do, right, sensei?"

"So long as it doesn't kill me, or result in my death," Naruto mumbled.

Isae nodded. She looked around for a moment, until her gaze settled on the stream.

"Don't poison their water supply," Naruto interjected before she could say anything. "That stream feeds into one of our lakes. Consequently, that lake empties out into the ocean. I don't think anybody wants to see the little fishies dying."

"Fine," She muttered. "I'll poison their mead, and in 12 hours, we can go crazy and slaughter them all. Happy?"

"Quite," Naruto replied.

"I feel somewhat left out," Saimei chuckled apprehensively.

"I guess I'll get started on poisoning their mead while you two set camp…" Isae stated hesitantly.

"Of course," Naruto replied. As he went to move; the glint from a senbon caught his eye. _"A missing-nin… How will they deal with that?"_

Without alerting Saimei, he sent a shadow clone to follow Isae, and the two of them set up camp.

_---13 Hours Later---_

Naruto sighed as he dodged a senbon by an inch. It was just his luck that the missing-nin used senbon. _"Why am I holding back against a C-class ninja again…? Oh yeah, it's because I'm lazy…" _"Why don't you try aiming before you throw? You might actually hit something then."

"Shows what you know, retard! I'm actually aiming for you!"

"Oh yeah, it shows," Naruto snorted.

His opponent growled and charged him. With a sigh, Naruto flicked a kunai into the man's throat, killing him instantly.

"What's wrong with the world when you can't even enjoy mindless violence?" Naruto muttered.

_**"Everything."**_

"So…" Naruto drawled when he saw Isae covered in blood and Saimei covered in beer. "Anything you guys want to tell me?"

"N-nope!" Saimei replied. Naruto looked around and noted the barrel of what used to be gunpowder lying 15 metres away. He then noticed the remains of an explosive tag beside it.

"Alright then!" Naruto chirped; then inwardly winced at how creepy he sounded. "Let's report this mission to Obaa-chan!"

As the team walked away, Naruto paused mid-step to throw a kunai at the neck of a missing-nin who lay close to the explosive tag. After the man's heart stopped, Naruto continued to follow his team. _"So they could kill bandits, but not a missing-nin?"_

_**"Weirder shit has happened."**_

_"Such as…?"_

_**"Schizophrenia."**_

Naruto coughed slightly.

_---At Konoha--- [[OnS seems a lot more lifeless than usual…]]_

"I'm tempted to confine you guys to D-Rank missions," Tsunade muttered after reading the report.

"But that's no fun!" Naruto whined. "You should just give us an A-Rank and get it over with!"

"How about no…?" Tsunade sighed.

"Fine," Naruto groaned.

_---With Hikari--- _

"I'm bored," Hikari groaned.

After a moment of griping, she finally decided that she might as well do something. So, Hikari walked back to Shisui's grave. As soon as she reached the weathered gravestone, she narrowed her eyes and activated her Sharingan.

As soon as her Sharingan was activated, Hikari was able to assume what happened, and when. _"Chakra traces… You've gotta love them."

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**Well, hope you liked some of it. If somebody can maybe write an actual readable version of this chapter, I might be able to finish the story. This chapter is where I really got stuck.**

**So yeah, I hope to see you guys soon. Feel free to check out _Different Circumstances_, by me!**

**- TD Sugoi  
**


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